Riding the Path To Twilight
by Xernuht
Summary: When a group of evil beings from across the universe plot to bring back a evil god exiled far in the past, Sora, Kairi, Riku, and a host of new allies must take a stand. Rated M because this could get explicit. Once called Reign of Chaos. Now dead.
1. Reluctance

**Xer: Hey, everyone! Here's my first edited chapter!**

**Insert disclaimer about not owning Kingdom Hearts here.**

**Riding the Path to Twilight**

**Ch. 1**

**Reluctance**

"No."

"What?"

"You're not serious, are you, Sora?"

The three teens stood on the small island, two wondering what had possessed Sora Lowell, the 15-year-old who had twice saved the universe from being overwhelmed by darkness. Kairi Irving, the 15-year-old girl in their group, and Riku Gallagher (see what I did there?), one year their senior, couldn't believe their ears.

"Please tell me you're kidding, Sora.", said Kairi, breaking an awkward silence.

"No. I can't do this again.", Sora replied.

"Why not?", Riku spat out. It was impressive to see his cool broken by a single word. Sora remained quiet. He was holding something back from his friends.

Lying on the ground between them was a note. A note from a bottle Kairi had found on her way to her friends. The words on it had caused this feud:

Dear Friends,

I hope this doesn't hurt any of you, but I have to tell you this now. There's something acting up, somewhere in the universe. Something dark and dangerous. I don't know when this will become a real threat, but I'd like for you three to be ready. I'd like to bring you to the castle to fully prepare yourselves for the fight ahead. This is your choice, however, and I won't force it upon you.

Sorry.

Mickey

Upon reading this, Riku and Kairi were ready to prepare the gummi ship, but Sora said no. Which returns us to the present time.

"Why not?", Riku continued pressing the matter.

"I... it's...", Sora muttered, looking away from his friends.

"What?"

"I-" Sora's hand tensed.

"WHAT?"

"I WON'T RISK LOSING YOU!"

A silence fell over Riku.

"It seems like every time I end up fighting, I lose you two. Either you're captured or you're corrupted. It makes me hurt more than you can imagine. Frankly, if I have to go through that again, I might break. I can't fight with your well-being on my mind."

"That's it?" Riku said. "That's why you won't go?" He sounded angry.

"Sora.." Kairi sounded disappointed. As Sora looked back at them, Kairi had drawn Destiny's Place and Riku had Way to the Dawn pointed at him. Both looked ready to fight to the death.

_**Battle Theme: Imperial Code by Daisuke Ishiwatari**_

"Get up.", Kairi said sternly. "Draw your keyblade."

"What?" Sora was in shock. _Did they just draw their blades at me?_

_Ya think?_, came the sarcastic voice of Roxas. _PAY ATTENTION!_

Sora snapped back to reality, summoning his keyblade, currently Oblivion, to block a slash Riku had aimed for his neck. The force would have definitely been lethal. As Sora pushed his friend back, Kairi had charged in from behind Riku. She threw in a quick volley of attacks from just about every direction she could. _When did she get this good?,_ Sora pondered as he defended himself from her attacks. He felt his shoe hit a plank of wood. _Shit._ He'd run out of room behind him. To get some room, he used his Counterguard shockwave to force Kairi on the defensive, then jumped all the way back to the beach. _Thank God for Valor and Master form._

Riku went to leap after him, but was stopped by a gold keyblade. Kairi gave Riku a look of deadly seriousness.

"Let me deal with this."

She followed Sora to the beach, and restarted her assault. He knew she had been training with Riku in The World That Never Was, but he had never expected her to be anywhere near as good as himself. The pressure she was applying with the speed and accuracy of her attack almost scared him. He was losing this fight.

_Let me help you,_ nagged Roxas, deep in Sora's mind.

_Why?_

_Because only you and Riku have ever fought me, and I can give you a few new tricks you don't have._

_Sounds cool. Let's give it a shot._ Sora then felt a sudden rush of knowledge flood into his mind. It didn't take more than a second, but Sora's vision quickly blacked out. _Sorry_, said Roxas. When Sora's vision returned, Kairi was trying to use a jumping vertical slash. From the left. Sora swung with his left arm, and Oathkeeper materialized and swatted Kairi's attack away. Sora, using both keyblades just like Roxas used to, went on the offense. Kairi blocked or evaded all of the attacks that Sora threw.

"What are you doing, Kairi?" Sora asked, some slight irritation apparent in the tone of his voice.

"If you're going to be worried about me on the battlefield, I guess I'll have to prove I'm able to defend myself, and get rid of your worry." She flipped back on one hand (_Stupid gymnastics classes,_ Sora briefly thought), and made a downward swiping motion with her free hand. The air over Sora crackled, and he just barely managed to use Reflega to deflect a Thundaga. "Riku, did you give her maxed elementals?", Sora shouted at his friend, who only nodded as Sora took a fireball to the chest, knocking him down.

_**Battle Theme change: Vanitas Sentiment Theme by Yoko Shimomura**_

"Come on, Sora, you're better than this. Get up and fight."

Sora took another fireball as he stayed on the ground.

"Fight like you mean it."

Sora took a thunderbolt to the chest.

"FIGHT LIKE YOU WANT TO PROTECT ME, DAMN IT!"

Sora flipped to the side as a chunk of ice fell over his old location. As he landed, he threw his keyblades at Kairi. She deflected them with a Reflega, but as soon as they hit the shield, they warped away.

_I guess I'll give you mine, too, _came a girl's voice from inside Sora's mind.

_And you are you?_

_Xion._

Sora summoned a third keyblade, in the form of Bond of Flames. He rushed at Kairi and swung hard. Riku stepped in to block it, and succeeded in getting bashed away. He manged to recover, and cut around behind Sora for an attack. Kairi rushed him from the front.

_C'mon guys, all together now!_

Sora dismissed Bond of Flames, drew Oathkeeper and Oblivion, and jumped up. The two friends leaped at him, and they began trading blows in midair. The three were in what seemed like a stalemate, until Sora caught Way to the Dawn in the gap in Oathkeeper's blade. Sora let go of his sword, caught the hilt between his legs, and spun. The elder boy's keyblade was ripped from his hand and sent flying into the shallow ocean water. Oathkeeper returned to Sora's hand, and Sora kicked Riku to the ground. Sora and Kairi kept trading blows until they landed. Kairi landed off balance, which Sora capitalized on. He did a quick leg sweep, knocking Kairi down. He used Oblivion to pin her Keyblade, Oathkeeper to pin her other arm, and held Bond of Flames to her throat. She smiled.

"Well? How'd we do?"

"... " Sora had doubt on his face. The kid did wear his heart on his sleeve. He dismissed all of his keyblades. Riku retrieved his weapon from the water, trying to shake it dry.

"Well?"

"All right, but before we go, I need you to promise me one thing."

Riku and Kairi looked ridiculously pleased with themselves. "Sure."

"Don't die. We're all coming back, okay?" Sora held Oathkeeper in front of him.

"Damn straight." Riku said, placing the blade of his sword on Sora's.

"Agreed." Kairi replied, following Riku's lead.

"Has it been found yet?", spoke a commanding voice.

This voice came from a man with a regal posture, wearing yellow, and holding a large yellow scepter.

"Calm down, Mateus.", said a maniacal voice. The man behind it was a man dressed like a court jester. "God, such a stickler."

"Kefka, silence yourself." The dark voice came from a knight, fully clad in dull, grey armour. Kefka did just that. "And no, Mateus, it hasn't been located yet. But when we do, the world will tremble at our power, and his..."

**Xer: So, any better than before? Please review.**


	2. Countdown to Departure

**Xer: So, I had a lot of spare time, so I decided to finish updating the story.**

**Vril: Damn right!**

**Xon: F**k yeah!**

**Xan: Let's face it, it's much better now.**

**Xer: Indeed. Now, for the biggest hurdle to jump so far: Ch. 2, the most rushed chapter in the story so far. Since this is a big Riku plot point, would you please do the honours?**

**Riku: Xernuht owns Neo-Org. XIII and the plot. SE and Disney own everything else.**

**Xer: If I did, there'd be more Square characters. Oh well, LET'S ROCK!**

Riding the Path to Twilight

Ch.2

Countdown to Departure

The alarm clock went off beside Riku's bed. Riku slammed the power button on the top of the clock, dragged himself out of bed, and went through his normal clean-up routine. He then proceeded to put himself in his school uniform.

_We know return you to after the fight..._

"Sora, Kairi, are we actually going to leave before school is over?"

"Why not?", Sora said with a large grin. "One more of Mr. Ishida's math classes, and I'll probably end up killing myself.". He saw no support from Riku, so he turned to Kairi, who was looking right back at him, with a none-to-approving look.

"If you don't stay, you don't get to finish your music course.", Riku taunted.

"Oh, heh heh, right.", the brunette said. Riku and Kairi teardropped. This boy was the hero of the cosmos, the new Chosen of the Keyblade, and he forgot about his favourite class. You'd think the universe would be doomed. "How much is left, anyways?". This earned Riku a facepalm and Kairi a sigh.

"Just over a month. We could wait that long, right?", Kairi asked, her question completely valid.

"Let's play it by ear.", Sora said. "If something seems off, we're gone."

_And we're back!_

Riku walked to school with Sora and Kairi as he had for the past 3 weeks. They arrived early, so Sora and Riku filled Kairi in on more of their adventures. Sora and Riku were at the part where Sora was asleep, while Riku and Roxas were dealing with their own issues (**A/N This is 358/2 Days, for continuity's sake. This is assuming that upon merging with Sora, Roxas's lost memories began returning**). Sora was going into high detail about some of the fights Roxas had when the bell rang.

_First Period: English (Riku)_

Riku entered the classroom and sat down where he typically sat, third row from the teacher, far right. As more students funneled in, their teacher, Ms. Kuchiki, took attendance. Ms. Kuchiki had photographic memory, so she was able to take the attendance without speaking a word.

"Alright, class. You know I've spent last week preparing your culminating activities, and I left you to read one of three books? Well, here's how it'll work. I'm going to break you off into groups based on what you read, break the groups into pairs, and I expect either one well-written, 3000 word essay, or two 1500 word essays on the same topic, but with different opinions on it. Now, let's break you up into three large groups based on the books. Who read Harsh Times?" Half the class raised their hands. Kuchiki quickly made note of the students. "And who read Lord of the Flies?" Everyone else Riku could see raised a hand. After more scribbles, the teacher said, "Then I assume Mr. Gallagher and Ms. Farron will be pairing up for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest?"

_Wait, what? There's another student?_, Riku thought. _I thought that was all of them!_. He felt a tap on his shoulder, and he whipped around with a spooked expression, which quickly faded. He met eyes with his new teammate.

This girl was resting her head on her left arm, as if in thought. Her right arm was hovering near him, obviously the arm he was tapped with. Her hair was long, wavy, and pink, yet not a vibrant pink, like animes, and it fell over one of her shoulders. It was a dull pink that looked natural. Her face had a strong structure to it, similar to what you'd think to see in a soldier, yet had an aura of elegance. Her eyes were blue-grey, like storm clouds. Her body, from what he could tell, had fairly prominent curves and a slightly prominent bust. She was a looker, as his dad would say. His scan took less than two seconds, before he locked his eyes on hers.

"Lightning Farron, pleasure to work with you.", she said, moving her outstretched arm to offer a handshake. She sounded ridiculously apathetic.

"Riku Gallagher, the pleasure is all mine.". They shook, and Riku turned and hurled his eraser at a student who was whistling when they shook hands. What no one but Riku noticed were the smile that was on Lightning's face and the feeling of his insides lightening (you see what I did there) as they shook.

_Second Period: Instrumental Music (Sora/Kairi)_

"Okay, everyone, that was somewhat okay.", Mr. Madarame said as the class finished their attempted take on Libera Me From Hell (Gurren Lagann ftw).

"I think it needs more cowbell.", Tidus said, snickering and giving Wakka, ever the partner-in-crime, a high five.

"**I'LL SHOW YOU MORE COWBELL!**", the teacher yelled, almost throwing a tuba at the young athelete.

"Any idea why they took this class?", said Kairi, lowering her bass.

"Who knows, who cares?" Sora said, adjusting his guitar's strings. "I hope Riku's day's been less disruptive than ours."

_Lunch_

"Wait, she smiled?", Sora asked.

"Yeah, why?", Riku asked, much more confused. At lunch, Riku met Sora and Kairi at the usual spot on the school's front steps. The two of them were ridiculously knowledgeable of the students at the school (Sora inherited his heap of knowledge mostly from Kairi), so Riku thought it was safe to talk to them, and squeeze all the information about Lightning out of them.

"Lightning's current school title is 'Heartless', because she shows no emotion around anyone.", Kairi picked up. "The mere fact that she may have smiled is something special.". She then grinned before eating half her sandwich in one bite.

"... I don't get it.", Riku said. Sora was the one who facepalmed this time.

"OH MY GOD, MAN!", Sora screamed. Lowering his voice after he drew the gazes of half the students there, he continued, "Are you blind, deaf, and dumb? She's got a crush on you!"

Riku spat out his Oreo. "What the fuck, man? If what you said is true, then why wouldn't she say so?".

"Loosely in the words of Captain Shakespeare in Stardust, it takes a lifetime to build a reputation, and one second to break it. She knows she's got one, and it works for her. Do you think she's going to destroy it to tell a guy who may not love her she's got a crush on her? No."

"Like you know about reputation, Sora?", Kairi said, after finishing her sandwich.

"I'm just saying what I'm thinking. If you ask me, you should-"

"Riku should what?", spoke a monotonous voice. Lightning was sitting behind the friends. How she got there unnoticed, no one knows.

"Oh, guys, this is Lightning. Lightning, meet Sora and Kairi.", Riku said, while gesturing to the appropriate people. He shifted up a step. "We're teaming up for the English culminating activity."

"Speaking of which, seeing as you don't have a third period spare, why don't we work on it at the library after school?"

"Sure thing. See you then.". As Lightning left, Riku finally saw her whole body up close. His previous analysis was still correct, with two minor additions. She had long legs, and she was well muscled. His insides jumped again.

Kairi let a large grin loose. "Do you see that, Sora?"

Sora joined his girlfriend in grinning. "You bet, Kairi. Love."

_Library, after school_

Riku and Lightning sat by a computer and looked at some of the topics they had available. Eventually, they settled on an analysis of Bromden's mental condition, as a combined essay. Riku was thinking about whether or not he should try asking her out.

"Hey, Lightning?"

"Hm?", she grunted as she turned away from the monitor.

"I was wondering... ", he paused, gathered up the courage to do what he wanted to do, and continued. "There's a fair on one of the Islands this weekend. Would you like to come with me to it?"

"As in a date?", she asked, stern composure not swaying a bit.

"Yes. As in a date.", he comfirmed, then braced for the potential smacking she'd dish out, turning away.

Lightning's composure shattered. She stared at Riku. He seemed afraid of the response. She decided to toy with him, try and find out why he asked. She was going to say yes, but where would be the fun in not making him sweat it out a bit more?

"And why, pray tell, would you ask me?", Her steely, monotone voice cut into him like 100 keyblades. He panicked. When panicking, he always did one thing: speak his mind, absolutely unfiltered.

"Because I find you attractive, you seem like a nice person, and while you have that stony exterior, I saw you smile when we shook hands. You're not the ice queen people seem to say you are, and I want to meet that other Lightning, and to do that, I want to take you to the fair.". He gasped, having spewed that all out in one breath.

"Okay!", said Lightning in a happy voice. It sounded much better than her monotone voice. Almost cute, in a way.

"Really?"

"Sure. I'm just surprised you didn't ask earlier."

"Hard to do with that stupid rep you've got at school."

"Screw the rep. I've got you now."

They spent about an hour working on their project, and another twenty minutes talking about themselves, more specifically their likes and dislikes. They shared a lot, but there was still a lot of differences, one of them being:

"Please, Tales of Symphonia 2 sucked.", Lightning said, stating her opinion.

"You're just saying that because it had Symphonia in the title. If it were it's own game, you'd love it."

After this and a few other arguments, they left the library. They walked together as far as they could, then parted ways. Riku dashed home, went straight to his room, and used the phone there to call Sora.

"Sora!"

"What?"

"I asked Lightning out!"

"... what?"

"Exactly what I said."

"Really? How'd it go?"

"Amazingly. She's really nice if she drops the Ice Queen persona. I think I'm in -"

"Love?"

"Yeah..."

"Great. Thanks a lot."

"What?"

"Now I owe Kairi 50 munny."

"WHAT?"

"Yeah, we bet on whether you'd ask her out at the library or not."

Riku hung up. _Way to spoil my high, man._

Over the course of a month, Riku and Lightning were damn near inseparable. They ate lunch with Kairi and Sora, and they got to know and befriend her. When they went to the fair, Riku covered their admission and dinner (your wallet gets fat when you beat the crap out of Heartless for a year), and Lightning managed to pressure him into letting her cover lunch. He took her to the island that he and his friends used to play on, and they spent some time in sweet solitude, which tended to lead into intense make-out sessions. Once, they were interrupted by a bird almost landing on her head, but Riku, slipping up his 'regular guy' disguise, shooed it away with a fireball. Proving to be probably the best girlfriend ever, she continuously told him how cool his magic was, and he indulged her with various tests of his prowess. They also raced like Sora and him used to, over on the other section of the island, but she proved to be too much for him. She won every time, and he didn't ever hold back.

School life became different, too. She was part of the tennis and basketball teams, and he went to every game to cheer her on to two first-place finishes. She, in turn, cheered him on as he helped bring the soccer team second, even if the dynamic teamwork of Wakka and Tidus stole most of the show. Her 'Heartless' title faded after a week, when everyone finally realized that they weren't breaking up at all, and she wasn't a cold-hearted bitch at all. Everything was beautiful, even as Tidus insisted the band needed more cowbell, and Mr. Madarame continued his outbursts. Which takes us to...

_Three days until the month's end_

Riku and Lightning were lying down on the beach on the island where his story had begun. The school year had ended, and thanks to some letters sent by the King, Riku, Sora, and Kairi had passed. The couple decided that they'd spend the remainder of the evening on the island, all to themselves. Lightning was looking up at the night sky, but Riku was staring at her face, watching how the moonlight seemed to make her glow. They were just enjoying each other's company.

"Do you want a drink?", Riku asked. He was getting a bit thirsty.

"Sure, if it wouldn't inconvenience you." She knew where he was looking. She'd peeked a few times out of the corner of her eye. She thought it was beautiful how his hair shined under the moon's light.

Riku got up, and went to the shed. Selphie had been bringing pop here for months and never laid claim to it, and didn't mind if someone else had some. _And here I thought she was just trying to keep it from her parents_, he chuckled internally.He grabbed two ginger ales and went to rejoin his girlfriend. As he left the shed, he saw Lightning, standing up on alert, surrounded by about nine Samurai nobodies. He dropped the soda.

_Battle theme: Attack With Conviction! from Grandia III_

"Lightning! Are you okay?"

"Just peachy. Aside from the Miyazaki rejects." God, he loved her sarcasm.

Riku instinctively summoned Way to the Dawn, and threw it into the nearest Samurai, ripping it's arm from it's body. As it returned, three more charged him. He shot them down with a Dark Aura burst, and charged as his blade returned to his hand, ripping the injured Nobody apart as it passed through it's body. As two leaped over Lightning, they dissolved as another Keyblade cut them down. Riku didn't look into it too much, thinking Sora or Kairi was joining in. He cut down another, and as the remainder charged the hardened warrior, Riku heard a girl yell "Ruin!", and they exploded in a burst of white energy. Riku had never seen Ruin magic before, let alone heard of it, but it was damn powerful. As the smoke cleared from the landing of the spell, Riku saw Lightning standing uninjured, but sweating a little. He was too, but it seemed odd that she'd get that nervous.

"Are you okay?" Riku asked. Maybe there was something else.

"Just fine.", she said, hiding her arms behind her. Something metallic-looking caught the moonlight, reflecting some into Riku's face.

"What is that?", he asked, pointing at the object she hid so poorly.

Lightning sighed, and pulled her arms from behind her. In her hands was a sword. However, it looked odd. Riku looked at his own right hand, seeing his Keyblade. Her sword was structured the same way, but the blade was pure silver, with smooth, wavy engravings leading up to the tip. At the top, sticking out one side, was a piece of metal shaped like a curved talon. It was distinctly sword-shaped, unlike his own Keyblade.

"Is that a keyblade?"

"That's what it said it was. It calls itself Blazefire.", she said, looking a little ashamed.

"Way to the Dawn is mine." Riku felt extremely awkward.

Lightning walked up to Riku, and lifted his face up so he could see her. He looked ashamed. "Look, I'm sorry I didn't say anything, but how was I to know you had a keyblade? And come to think of it, you never told me about yours. Care to explain?" She used the same tone she used at the library, and sure enough, he spilled the beans.

"I'm sorry, but the keyblade apparently has a bad history, so I figured if I tried to keep it under wraps, it wouldn't do anything."

"Really?", she asked. "Where'd you hear that?"

"From too many people, and the same thing each time. 'It brings either disaster or hope wherever it goes.'".

"Yeah, and look where it got me.", Sora said as his boat pulled up alongside Kairi's at the dock. Kairi had already tied hers off.

"AH! God, man, some warning next time?"

"Sorry, but we came to tell you -"

"Whoa, hang on. You've got them, too?" Lightning seemed intrigued.

Sora summoned his three and Kairi called out hers. Lightning smiled. "Cool."

"Now, back to the main subject. We've gotta go." Sora said sternly

"Huh?"

"The King left another message, this time on the phone. Don't ask how. Thing is, the shit's hit the fan, and we've gotta go."

"And?", Lightning asked, getting her puzzled looks. "Hey, if I'm part of a club, I expect to know what's going on."

"Then you're coming with us.", Kairi stated.

_Theme: Chance For A Big Reversal - Tales of Vesperia_

"Really? Cool! Where exactly would we be going, anyways?"

"Offworld.", Sora said. "Riku, we have to go now."

"Okay, let's go, then."

"What about your parents?" Lightning asked.

"This isn't the first time we've been offworld. They trust us, amazingly. What about yours?"

"Mom lets me see to myself. She trusts me, too. On that note, can I go see to some things first?"

"Sure, we'll meet you at your place."

Lightning rowed back home as fast as she could. She dashed through the front door, and quickly explained everything to her mother. She said she understood (_Odd._), and let her daughter go pack things. She threw some clothes and toiletries into a bag, said good-bye, and bolted out the door, encountering a large ship with its rear hatch open. Riku met her inside.

"Welcome to the Vana'diel!"

The awe of the ship kept her silent for a bit, then common sense hit her. "Wait, if you could have flown me home, why did you let me row?"

"Humour."

As the ship took off for Disney Castle, only Sora and Kairi could hear Riku being blasted by a Ruin spell.

**Xer: Much better, much longer, much more awesome. If at all possible, REVIEW! Use the little button below to tell me what you think.**

**Xan: I do.**

**Xer: Yeah, but I expect that, considering I review damn near everything you do consistently.**

**Xan: Touche.**

**Xer: On that note, anxiously await the update of Ch. 3, m'kay?**


	3. Calamity Trigger

**Xer: Yeah, came back quick, huh? Well, I had a LOT of spare time, so here we are. Cue disclaimer -**

**Terra: Xernuht owns the plot,**

**Aqua: And all original characters.**

**Ventus: SE and Disney have the rest.**

**Xer: Thanks, guys. Let's rock!**

Riding The Path To Twilight

Ch. 3

Calamity Trigger

_Pandaemonium_

The clanking of a heavy suit of armour was heard on the crystal floor of the castle on Pandaemonium, a dark world few knew of, and those who did knew enough to stay away. Pandaemonium was a large crystal world, actually, littered with ruins of a long dead civilization, long since overrun by demons. The crystals pulsed with a low, unearthly glow. This didn't phase the knight walking to the main chamber, however. He'd been on the planet long enough to be used to it. He pushed the door to the chamber open with his free hand. In his other hand, he held his large sword. 833 years had taught him, no, trained him, to keep his blade ready at all times.

As he entered the room, he was met with gazes from the others assembled, sitting in chairs around the room in a perfect circle. Scoffing at how cliche the setup was, he took his seat and scanned the room, making sure everyone had arrived.

Directly to his left was a man, fairly tall, with a regal posture. His yellow, white and grey clothes showed a somewhat toned body despite his liberal use of magic. His cloak, yellow on the back, grey on the underside, draped over the back of the chair. His scepter hovered at his side. He was Emperor Mateus of the dead Palamecian empire, hopelessly annihilated by civil wars caused by him in his bid for absolute rule. He was now the ruler of this dead world, and the demons with whom he'd dominated for the power of Hell itself.

Continuing along, a grey-haired woman sat on the next chair. She could be considered naked, if not for the red and black tatters that hugged her body like paint, and the cape that was attached to her gloves. Extending from her waist were two strange tentacles with toothed demon faces that occasionally snapped at Mateus's scepter. The Cloud of Darkness was a being of pure darkness that was almost as old as himself. She held herself regally, as well, despite not even being of any royal lineage.

Next was a man at least a head taller than the knight, encased in black, dark blue, and purple armour head-to-toe. Through his helmet, a single yellow orb was visible, leading him to occasionally wonder if Golbez was actually now a powerful Heartless. His gauntleted hands were clenched together under his chin, supporting his head, as if he were thinking. He truly deserved honour, as he was as good at talking as he was at spell-slinging, and his brother was currently the King of his homeworld, and Golbez was his advisor and a general.

After Golbez was a tall, green-skinned man, wearing a large green helmet and an intricate battle-dress. His fingers were tipped in talons, yet there were no nails. At nearly 6 feet, 7 inches, ExDeath was another being of pure dark, but much younger than the Cloud. His spear hovered in a close orbit around him, its golden blade pointed downwards. You'd perceive him as a tall man, but he was actually an ancient tree that had consumed the souls of the most powerful beings to be cast into the darkness of the Void.

Next in the circle was Kefka Palazzo. One of the younger members, he was decked in flamboyant jester's clothes, with clown make-up on his face. Despite his age, Kefka was an extremely powerful mage, with some of the most devastatingly random spells the knight had ever seen. As Kefka juggled a fireball in one hand, it was apparent he had long ago been driven mad by his power. It was hard to believe he'd driven his world to ruin, but he had done so, and twistedly felt compelled to take pictures of his deeds.

Kefka threw the fireball like a baseball at the next man along, who cut it apart with his double-bladed katana. The silver-haired boy, who was also the youngest of their group, was decked in a leather suit that went from his neck to his feet. He sheathed his sword with great speed. Kadaj was young, but the power he held was almost a complete copy of an older, significantly more powerful warrior. One who was key to their master plan...

Next sat Ultimecia, the time witch. Her black-silver hair was tied up into what looked like two horns, kept up out of her tattooed(?) face. She sat cross-legged in her chair, stopping anyone from catching a look up her robe. And yet, she had no issues showing off ample cleavage. She was hideously attractive, and she knew it. She used it as a weapon, along with more hideously powerful magic. Showing her any part of you could prove disadvantageous in the future.

Next in line was a young man, third youngest in the group. His long, silver locks of hair were held off his ridiculously androgynous face. He had thought Kuja, in his poofy clothes, armoured codpiece (ugh), and exposed waist, was a girl when they first met. Despite his looks, Kuja was another powerful mage, having destroyed his planet on his own.

Beside the mage was Jecht. He was spinning his giant sword on the ground in anxiety. The youngest old man of the group, he had a large J tattooed to his chest. He also had large black shorts, and a gauntlet that extended down his left arm. He had the power of the Aeons coursing through him, being a powerful being known as the Final Aeon. This made him invaluable, despite his explosive, emotional, and temperamental nature. He was a wild card, but his fighting prowess was more than impressive.

A second knight sat to Jecht's right. His armour looked like a duller, smaller version of his own suit. Resting on the floor was his glaive, an intricately designed weapon that mirrored the detail he put into battle. The glaive, however, had a hidden trick. Gabranth, ex-Judge Magister of the fallen world of Archades, could split the glaive apart into two swords, which had actually helped him defeat Jecht in a fight once. He was a true force to be reckoned with, just because of his determination. It didn't help that he also had a massive power behind him: a shard of auracite ,the last remnant of his family, a soulstone formed from the dying heart of his brother Basch.

Next sat a red-haired warrior in a red leather coat. He sat, reading from his book, a poem from Radiant Garden. His red saber rested in his lap. His black shirt, pants, and boots were reminiscent of a certain blond warrior who fought for good. Genesis Rhapsodos was equal part mage and swordsman, who would rival Sephiroth, his old friend, if he only had more experience fighting for his life. His skills in diplomacy and spellcasting were greater than the One-Winged Angel's, however, being able to forge Eidolons, summonable spirits, on his own.

Finally, to the knight's right, sat a blonde woman with a curvy figure. Despite the angelic glow her wings of holy energy produced, her black garb gave her a menacing appearance. If not for her utter indifference to anyone, Iseria could get any man or woman she wanted. Being a fallen celestial, she carried quite possibly the greatest amount of power in the group. Sephiroth used to match her, but he was gone, cast to the realm of the Dead long ago.

He finally decided to talk. "So, we are all present and accounted for?"

"So it would seem.", spoke Ultimecia.

"FINALLY!", screeched Kefka, juggling another fireball. "I was getting bored." he hurled the fireball at Gabranth, but before it hit him, it curved and flew at Golbez, who shot it down with a bolt of darkness.

"Foul jester! Restrain yourself, or I will.", Golbez spat. Kefka huffed, and crossed his arms and legs.

"How goes the search for Jenova, Kadaj?", the knight asked.

"It's going nowhere.", he said. "It seems my information continues to be false. Mother will be found, though, Garland. Yazoo and Loz continue the search as we speak. Reunion shall commence as expected."

"What then, little remnant?", spoke Genesis, turning up from LOVELESS.

"Either Mother accepts me as her heir, or..." He fell silent.

"Or the lead role in your little play is shifted to the older lead, correct?" Kuja struck a nerve, seeing the mako-filled eyes flare in anger.

"Either way, we need Jenova's full power to finish this.", Mateus spoke up. "Failure is not an option, understand?" Kadaj only nodded.

"We do not fully understand the need for the power of the Calamity.", the Cloud said. "Are ours and Exdeath's not enough?"

"Far from it, actually.", Gabranth spoke up. "Jenova had power that dwarfed most beings. It took the Celestials to stop her before. Her son inherited that power, and Kadaj only got a sliver. He, however, has a link to both the spirit of Jenova and the spirit of Sephiroth. With what's left of the Calamity, he can acquire the means to access the full power of Jenova. Then the final phase of our plan can come to fruition." How he knew of the history of the Celestials was unknown, but Iseria was pleased she didn't need to waste her breath explaining.

"Which was what, again?" Jecht was never good at remembering plans.

"Jenova was merely an emissary of the greatest darkness the universe has ever known." Iseria spoke, irritated by the man's insolence. " I see no reason to continue. Exdeath, you've remained silent. Care to enlighten the lazy oaf?"

With a low groan, ExDeath began. "The Celestials were formed by the Goddess of Light, Minerva, in order to battle against the Void, what most falsely refer to as the Darkness, and its master, Necron, God of Death. Shinryu, Goddess of Darkness, never really did bother trying to start anything, or even stop anything. Anyways, Necron was sealed within The Void by Minerva, who locked the gate with 13 crystals. Jenova managed to escape before the door shut, to use layman's words. Her powers allowed her to destroy the crystals and release Necron, but she was stopped before she could begin destroying them."

"So we're picking up where she left off, huh?" Jecht said, beginning to remember.

"Precisely.", Golbez said. "First, we determine where the gate to the Void is, in addition to the location of the Jenova remnants."

"Then, in our second act, we acquire the crystals."

"Then KABOOM go the crystals, out comes Necron, and we get to watch the universe burn! Kyee hee hee!" Kefka belted out like the homicidal maniac he was.

"What's in it for us, then?"

"Our deepest desires, Jecht.", Genesis stepped in.

"We rule absolutely over this pitiful universe, and mold it as we see fit.", Mateus said with glee. The embers of absolute dominion lit up once again.

"Alright, so what do you need me to do?" Jecht said with a grin. This could be fun.

_Disney Castle_

The Vana'Diel landed in the hanger of Disney Castle. As the ramp lowered to let the Keyblade Warriors out, Lightning couldn't help but look amazed at what was around her. While Sora, Kairi, and Riku had been off-world repeatedly over the past almost-two years, Lightning was new to this. She loved it.

"Stop it. You're drooling."

She lightly punched Riku in the arm. They continued out of the hanger and out to the courtyard. Lightning continued to stare in amazement at the oddly fascinating world around her. She turned back to her new friends to find them bowing. She looked past them to see two really large mice, two large ducks, and a bipedal dog, all wearing clothes. Riku tugged her down by the collar.

"You're supposed to bow to royalty, you know."

"What, the mice are royalty?" She erupted into a fit of laughter, cut short by-

"I don't get what's so funny."

"HOLY SHIT! THE MOUSE TALKS!"

The male duck spoke up. "Mind your manners around the King!"

"THEY ALL TALK?"

"A-hyuck, what's so confusing?"

"Sorry, everyone." Sora spoke up, standing up. "Lightning isn't used to being off-world, let alone seeing animals talk."

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Lightning. I'm King Mickey Mouse."

"Lightning Farron, Keyblade Wielder."

"Oh, really?" the King said enthusiastically,"Can I spar with you for a bit, just to see what you can do?" He then drew Twilight Reflection (my name for his keyblade. Frankly, Kingdom Key D sucks as a name).

"Figures the mouse has one, too.", Lightning said, drawing Blazefire.

_Battle Theme: Blinded By Light – Final Fantasy XIII_

Mickey leaped into the air, spinning and bringing his blade crashing down on Lightning's head. Lightning flipped out of the way, thanking her athletic ability. As he landed on her feet, she fired a Ruin spell at the King, only to see it shot out of the air by a Pearl spell from the King. Magic being useless, she dashed at the King, launching herself into a flip to build momentum. As she propelled herself out of the flip to try and hit the mouse, she found herself hitting air. The King had dodged to the left, and was above Lightning as she landed. She spun her body around to kick him, but only saw her attack blocked by his blade.

"Gotcha."

Lightning threw another Ruin at the king, readjusting her weight to flip out of the way. The King shot it down, but was forced onto the defensive when Lightning sped over to the recovering mouse and slammed her sword down on his as he blocked. The pressure she was applying for what he thought was a novice warrior was remarkable, and her strength, speed, and reaction times were superior to any school athlete. Who was she?

On the sidelines, Riku was amazed at how her skills rivalled his. He had years off-world, Sora had his and Roxas' experience, and Kairi had Namine's magic knowledge with her own well-developing fighting skills. Lightning was stuck on the islands, as far as he knew.

"Good.", spoke a new voice, much older than any others the teens had known. "I was afraid the new blood would be too far behind to be useful. It's still so nice to be proven wrong."

The fight stopped as everyone turned to the source of the voice. It was a tall, dark-skinned man, easily in his 70's. Sora and Riku recognized the clothes he wore as the garb of an old foe, and Kairi even clicked in when she saw the amber eyes. Their Keyblades all emerged.

_Battle Theme: Struggle Away/The Fight For My Friends – KH: 358/2 Days_

"Now, now. No need for this. You wouldn't be able to beat me anyways.", the old man chuckled.

"You wanna bet?", Sora screamed, charging at him with his twin blades out. He unleashed a huge barrage of attacks, only to find them all evaded.

"It seems Roxas' abilities didn't quite transfer fully.", the man said.

"Yeah, which is why...", Sora said while slamming Oathkeeper and Oblivion together, which resulted in a glowing aura appearing around the blades. As the aura dropped, only Sora's Bond Of Flames was left. "... I'm doing this my way now!" He charged again. He swung with a horizontal swing fast enough that there was no chance to evade.

Which, of course, led to Sora's shock when a Keyblade he'd never seen parried his. The strange ethereal voice filled his head with a name.

_Eternal Damnation._

Riku jumped up over his friend and tried to cut the man down from behind, only to be knocked down by _another_ keyblade. A tall knight with a dark aura held the large sword. Sora recognized him as the Soldier from the strange portal in the Cornerstone Hall, but he didn't think that guy would leave.

_Earth Shaker._

Kairi and Lightning leaped at the new warrior, only to be stopped by two more. Also wielding Keyblades.

_Lost Memories. Grand Equalizer _(my name for Eraqus's keyblade)_._

The new warriors shoved away the girls, yet never attacked. Neither did the soldier or the man dressed as Xehanort's Heartless. In fact, when no one attacked anyone, the man recalled his blade.

"I'm sorry. I've been getting foul receptions as of late." He extended a hand to Sora, who shook it. This man didn't seem evil, he just looked the part.

_Idiot_, Roxas chipped in.

"Sorry. Who are you, exactly?"

"This," the King said, "is Xehanort. He was a Master in the Order of Keyblades."

"The what?"

"The Order of Keyblades, " Xehanort continued, "was an order of warriors able to use Keyblades, and used them to preserve order. Terra,", gesturing to the tallest, "Ventus," pointing to the one who held his keyblade back-handed, " and the youngest Master, Aqua,", directing gazes to the final warrior, "were among the last remaining warriors after the appearance of the Unversed caused by my old apprentice, Vanitas. I sought a way to stop him from doing so, and a warrior named Reeve told me about a way to gain the power to defeat them all."

"What was his last name?", Riku asked.

"Gallagher... you're his boy, aren't you?". Riku nodded. "I thought I recognized Way to the Dawn! It was your father's weapon, too."

"Can you continue the story?", Riku said through gritted teeth. How come Dad never told him?

"Very well. Anyways, I learned that if I were to acquire a weapon called the X-blade, I could use it's power to harness the light of Kingdom Hearts to banish the Unversed and defeat Vanitas for good. These three, under mistaken orders from Eraqus, proceeded to oppose me. Sadly, forced to play double-agent, I had Terra and Ventus follow me, both to get stronger and to begin to understand the real threat the Unversed were. Aqua followed as well, and probably became the greatest antagonist to Vanitas out of us. I learned that Ven was the key to the X-blade, having a heart of pure light to parallel Vanitas's pure darkness, but Eraqus, thinking I was being selfish, tried to cut down Ven. Thankfully, Terra stopped him. I had to finish him off, but it needed done. As the only Master with no world, Aqua turned it into what I believe you know as Castle Oblivion."

Sora and Riku nodded. So many memories...

"Anyways, we confronted my apprentice, and he was defeated before either of us could acquire the X-blade. As a means to finish us off afterwards, he tried to use the combined power of the Unversed to send us to the Realm of Darkness. Suffice to say, he succeeded. Thanks to Aqua's keyblade being left out here, we managed to make it back. It took 11 years, but here we are."

"But isn't she holding hers now?" Kairi asked.

"Yes and no." came a soft voice from Aqua's armor. She tapped her shoulder, and the armor flashed and warped away. I see no reason to explain what she looks like. Just search for an image yourself. "This is Eraqus's keyblade. I technically inherited it when he died. You've got mine, actually, Kairi."

"How did you..." she began to ask, when the memory of the older woman defending her from Unversed. "Oh, do you want this back?"

"Not the blade, but the keychain would be nice."

Riku reached into his pocket, and tossed a small keychain to her. "I found it, so I replaced it with a more productive chain I thought would suit Kairi better." aqua quickly swapped the keychains on her keyblade, and it trnsformed.

_Rain Storm._ "Much better."

Feeling a level of pride knowing she had a Master's keyblade, she forced the more pressing matter back to the table of discussion. "Now, what exactly is the great emergency?"

Mickey guided everyone down to the Cornerstone. When they got there, Sora couldn't believe his eyes.

The Cornerstone of Light was actually emitting a shadowy aura. It reminded him of his Anti-form.

"Do you know what's going on?"

"No idea."

"So, it isnt supposed to do that?", Lightning added.

"No. The Cornerstone is a beacon of Light. Darkness shouldn't be able to touch it." Xehanort put a hand to his chin, thinking.

Kairi felt something eminating from the aura of shadows. She made sure to let people know this. As she did, she approached the stone. She reached toward the shadows.

"What are you doing?", Sora yelled.

"Can darkness hurt a Princess of Heart?", she asked.

"I don't think so, but-"

"Kairi! Don't do it!" Xehanort yelled, too late.

Kairi forced her hand onto the stone. The aura immediately wrapped around her, swallowing her. Sora screamed, drew the Kingdom Key in place of Bond Of Flames, and used the light of the Keyblade to try and break Kairi free.

Kairi found herself in a very dark place. There were no shadows, though. There was just nothing but her. A sound caught her attention, specifically the noise of numerous wailing voices, and she spun to see what made it. Behind her was a titanic white being with giant dark-blue clawed arms, and no lower body. It had two smaller white arms crossed over its chest, as if it were laid to rest. A swarm of voices invaded her mind, as if to drive her mad. A single voice was more prominent, and it spoke words that chilled her to the heart.

Terra reached into the black aura, and felt Kairi's arm before the aura threw him back. Sora closed his eyes, and focused on finding Roxas. Soon, he found himself on his Destati. Roxas, in street clothes, walked up and punched him.

"Get Namine out of there!"

"It's Kairi, and I've tried!"

"Quiet!", came the voice that identified itself previously as Xion. Sure enough, the female persona appeared.

**Bold = Roxas**, _Italics = Xion_, Normal = Sora

"_Now, what's wrong?"_

"I can't break through those shadows."

"**Why not?"**

"I can't generate the power."

"**Excuses!"**

"_Quiet down. I'll lend you all of my power. If Roxas does the same, it should be okay."_

Sora's eyes re-opened. He immediately called all of his keyblades to him, with the dark and light ones hovering around him.

"Let's go!". With a flash, Sora entered Final Form and aimed all of the keyblades at the massed aura. All three fired their light at the aura, and it peeled back. Sora flew in at full speed and ripped Kairi out of it.

"Kairi!", Sora said, worry thick in his voice as he reverted to his regular form. "Are you okay?"

"No. I'm definately not. Some _thing_ is doing this. Does anyone know who Necron is?"

Xehanort and the King went pale, and the knights reacted in shock.

"Did he say anything?" the old Master asked, slightly fearful.

"Yes. He said, 'Know fear, being of light. The return of Necron is coming, and both the Light and Dark are incapable of stopping me. When the Void is released, the suffering shall only begin. Nothingness is eternal.' Why?"

Xehanort couldn't move or talk. Terra, however, summed up the thoughts of those who knew of Necron in one simple word.

"Well, fuck."

**Xer: Back later with Ch. 4, m'kay?**


	4. New allies, New enemies

**Xer: Wow, three in a day, huh?**

**Vanitas: Shut up and get going. He doesn't own KH or FF, but he does own the plot and the OC's, which finally appear. And no, Necron isn't one of them.**

**Necron: SILENCE, WORM!**

**Xer: Moving on...**

Riding The Path To Twilight

Ch. 4

New Allies, New Enemies

"So, let me wrap my head around this. You called us together to fight a god?" Lightning was pissed off.

"It would seem." Xehanort was pretty calm, considering what had happened.

"Well, count me out." She dropped off of the rooftop the Keyblade Masters had found. After the scare at the Cornerstone, Xehanort had activated a Dark Corridor to Radiant Garden. Terra, Ven, and Aqua were going to help Mickey find all the records they could on Necron. Any help would be good.

"Lightning, wait.", Riku jumped down and followed her. Sora was about to go after them both, but a hand fell on his shoulder.

"Come on, Sora. It's Riku. If anyone will get Lightning back, it'll be him." The smiling face of Kairi made him feel better.

"Good point. Thanks, Kairi."

"Even so, I still need to talk with them." Xehanort formed another Corridor. "I'll go see them. You two will be fine on your own?"

"Duh. I did save the universe twice, you know."

"Fair enough." Stepping into the shadowy portal, he was gone with a chuckle.

"Feels weird being helped by a Xehanort, huh?" Sora asked.

"Totally. It almost feels dirty." Kairi added. There was an awkward pause.

"Say, Kairi, you know about the legend of the paopu fruit, right?"

"Yes. Who doesn't?" Kairi saw the great hero fidget where he sat. It was cute.

"Well, I wanted to ask..."

There was a long pause. She waited as he tripped over numerous attempts to ask, until, finally:

"... when we get back to the Island, do you want to share one?"

"How long were you planning to put this off?" Sora was already nervous. She couldn't help but mess with him some more.

"Well, umm..."

"Hmmm?"

"Uhhhh..."

"Perhaps he was going to take it to his grave?" This came from a new voice. It sounded a little older than them, but much more sinister.

The two keybladers turned around to see a boy dressed in black leather. His short silver hair hung beside his face quite straight. His eyes, however, were what made Sora draw the Kingdom Key. His eyes were the exact same as Sephiroth's. Kairi drew Destiny's Place only because of Sora's reaction.

"Who are you?", the hero demanded.

"My name is Kadaj. I'm what you may call 'a remnant of a greater being'. Or perhaps you'd prefer 'a son of a Calamity'."

"Calamity..." Kairi thought. "You don't mean Jenova, do you?" One of the voices from before had been chanting ' the Calamity Jenova returns!'.

"Yes. Mother has been given such a cruel title, hasn't she? Oh, well. One I find her, my brothers and I shall learn who the heir of her legacy is, and they shall release Father from his unrightful enprisonment."

"What? Necron's your DAD?" Sora found it hard to wrap his head around these things.

"Yes. Now, where's Mother?"

"No clue."

"Oh, really? Perhaps you do know, and I'll have to take it from her corpse." The boy drew his sword and pointed it at Kairi.

_Battle Theme: Awkward Justice – Tales of the Abyss_

"Leave her alone!"

Sora dashed at Kadaj, swinging as he charged. The two blades clanked as they collided. Sora was launched into the air by the force Kadaj threw into his swing. His strength was inhuman. Kadaj chuckled as he used his katana to juggle Sora in midair as the boy was forced to guard.

"Come now, you can't think you'll beat me with that effort."

"No, but this should the trick. LIGHT!" A blast of light emitted from Sora's location, and as it died down, Sora landed on the ground in Limit Form. Immediately, he launched into Sonic Rave, only to be parried with each attack.

_This even worked on Sephiroth. Why not him?_

Strike Raid failed. Ars Arcanum failed. Ragnarok failed, even with the energy bursts. Sora kept attacking, with nothing working. He then dropped out of Limit Form.

"My turn."

Kadaj leaped at Sora, trying to stab him. Sora parried and wedged his blade between the edges of Kadaj's strange sword, but was knocked down as Kadaj spun low and used the extra momentum to kick Sora in the chest. As he fell back, Kadaj twisted his blade, and flung the captured keyblade out of Sora's hands and into the alley behind Kadaj. He walked casually toward the hero, preparing to continue the beatdown, when a fireball flew at his head.

"Keep away from him."

Kairi stood defiantly, keyblade towards Kadaj. Kadaj started laughing.

"Little girl, do you really have what it takes to kill me?" As he said this, his right hand glowed.

"I can try."

"Then die trying." He swung his hand at her, and a hail of blue projectiles flew at Kairi.

"NO!" Sora screamed.

_Back with Lightning and Riku._

"Wait up."

"Hell no. I thought there'd be some fun adventuring, things to laugh about with Serah back home-"

"You have a sister?"

"- and maybe some interesting little attempt to take over a kingdom that we would foil, but NO! My life just keeps getting fucked up more each day, first with Dad's murder, then with Blazefire, and now with this."

"Wait, your father was murdered?"

"Ah, yes, a fond day to be remembered." Another voice chimed in, sultry and snide. Another deep voice could be heard laughing.

Both keybladers stood at full attention, blades drawn.

Two men, both decked out in full black leather, stepped out of the shadows. One with long flowing hair and a gun in hand, the other with short spiky hair and a menacing device on his left arm. Both had sky blue eyes and silver hair.

"Who are you?"

"We'll ask the questions-"

"No, Loz. Let us introduce ourselves. My name is Yazoo." The long-haired man bowed shortly. "This is Loz. We are here to find Mother."

"Who?", the pink-haired warrior asked.

"Lightning!"

"Mother, Jenova, so many names. Where is she?" Yazoo leveled his gun at Lightning's head.

_Battle Theme: Bloody Destiny – Persona PSP_

"That voice... No."

"Hmm? Lightning?"

"It can't be... No." Lightning smiled. "Life is too lucky some days." She ran at Yazoo, blocking the bullet that flew at her head.

"You're the one who killed my father!" She swung at his head. Yazoo parried her blade, and kicked her away. She flipped back up. As she landed, Loz punched her in the gut, and fired his gauntlet. The pulse of electricity and force of the punch sent her flying.

"Bastards!" Riku fired a hail of Dark Aura spells at Loz. It looked like they hit. Yazoo fired off a few rounds, which were blocked, but before Riku could retaliate, he heard a scream from Lightning. He turned to see Loz kicking her as she lay on the ground. He ran after him, but saw a glowing blur of blue hit him in the face, dropping him in a second. He couldn't see anything but white, but he heard Lightning get dragged over to him.

He heard the brothers laugh.

He heard the sliding of a gun being drawn from it's holster.

He heard the hammers on two guns pull back.

"GETSUGA TENSHOU!"

He heard an explosion near his feet. He shook his head to reorient himself, and saw two people standing between him and the enemy. He felt worry as his vision returned when he saw the black robes with hoods.

"The Organization?"

"Here to save the day, apparently.", came a voice to the right. The man there held two gleaming longswords, one designed like a falchion and crimson like fire, one like a longsword and light blue like ice.

"And just in time!", said the other one. He held a long, black katana in his hand, that swirled with reddish-black energy.

"Get out of our way.", the long-haired boy demanded.

"Meanies!", the spiky-haired one whined.

"Now why would we do that? Can you think of why, Xancel?"

"No, Vrilgix. No clue." Both men drew their blades into battle poses. The others prepared to attack.

"Yazoo, Loz, we're leaving.", came a commanding yell.

Kadaj was leaping over rooftops, evading bolts of light from a third Organization member, this one wielding a long, blue sword that was quite oddly designed. It looked like a weaponized tuning fork. A Dark Corridor opened, and the three men ran through. As the Corridor closed, the last Org. Member dropped down to the ground. Riku tried to hear what they were saying, but he lost himself to darkness.

_Disney Castle_

_3 days later_

Sora awoke in a bed. Scanning the surroundings, he saw three other beds, each with its own keyblade wielder in it. They were all asleep.

As he looked around more, he saw four people standing around. One was unmistakenly Xehanort, and one was most definitely Aqua, but the other two were different. One was a tall, black-haired man in a black shirt and poofy beige pants. The last was a dead perfect copy of Roxas.

"Master, Sora's awake.", 'Roxas' said.

"Very good! Thank you, Ventus."

"WHAT?" Sora screamed, making Riku, Kairi, and Lightning shoot up in their beds, keyblades drawn.

"HE"S NOT FAKE?", the hero hollered.

"Why would I be fake?"

"Because you look like my Nobody. The Nobody I fused with a while back."

"I'm sorry, Sora. I can't explain why Roxas and Ventus here look similar. Perhaps we'll find out while training."

"Hold on, Master.", Riku blurted out. "What happened to the Organization?"

"You mean us?" came a new voice. The door opened, and three men in Org. cloaks walked in. The lead man had medium-length, semi-spiky hair, the next had long, orange hair pulled back into a short ponytail, and the third had sky blue spikes Cloud would be proud of.

"Ah, yes. Everyone, meet Xernuht, Vrilgix, and Xancel. They are top three seated members of the Neo-Organization XIII." Xehanort introduced them in order.

"It was us who pulled you out of those fights with the remnants." Xernuht had a commanding voice. "By the way, we're the only members so far."

"Yeah." Xancel was quiet.

"Good for us, right?" Vrilgix sounded giddy.

"Then shouldn't you be the Neo-Org. III?", Lightning asked, compelled by common sense.

"... we're still builing up the ranks.", Xernuht muttered.

"Well, thanks, anyways." Riku said, a level of depression in his voice. _I couldn't protect her..._

"Tell me Riku, you wield the power of darkness. Why didn't you use it?", the ancient Master asked him.

"What do you mean, Master? My magic is dark-based."

"Yes, but it isn't Darkness. You know that. What about the power you used on the Nobodies in Castle Oblivion?"

"No. I won't use it again. Every time I do, I hurt people I know."

"No, you won't, Riku. You see, you're more like your father than you think."

"What?"

"Riku, your bloodline traces back to the ancient soldiers of Shinryu, the Chasers. Warriors who could bend the True Dark to their very will."

"And that helped so much before."

"You also now have a true anchor to the light: Lightning, the daughter of a Celestial."

"Huh?" Lightning spoke up now.

"Riku, your ancestor was a Chaser. Lightning, your father was a Celestial."

"So we're the epitomes of light and dark-"

"-and we're both useless."

Terra walked over, and dragged Riku out of his bed. "Come on, sourpuss, let's get started." He dragged the silver-haired Chaser through a Dark Corridor to who-knows-where.

"Riku!", Lightning leaped out of bed after him, only to be tackled into another portal by Ventus.

Xehanort sighed. "Training starts now. Sora, come with me. Kairi will go with Aqua."

As the two got up, Xehanort continued.

"Say your goodbyes, too. You won't be anywhere near eachother for three years."

Sora stood dumbfounded. _Three years without Kairi?_ He turned to his lover, and was met with a kiss. He held her close for as long as she let him.

"Sora, promise me we'll finish this when we meet again.", she asked, tears beginning to build up.

"We will. I swear it on my heart.", he said, donning his trademark grin. _If only I truly were this happy..._

With these words, and many tears, they passed through the two portals that formed, followed by their teachers. The Nobodies were left in the room on their own.

"Well, Superior, should we keep refilling the ranks?" Vrilgix said.

"Indeed, No. 2. We shall. Come, No. 3."

The Nobodies walked through another Corridor to some place, and the castle fell silent, save for a broom mopping the floor outside.

**Xer: Yay! Next chapter's gonna be the last updated one. Sayonara!**


	5. Linger No Longer

**Xer: Last chapter for the big update!**

**Sora: ... but why?**

**Xer: Huh?**

**Sora: It seems fine to me.**

**Xer: Well, due to plot re-writes and a change of mind on some things, I feel this one needs a tweaking.**

**Xonel: What about next chapter?**

**Xer: A very miniscule tweak, not even worthy of noting the edit.**

**Xon: Okay. Xernuht owns Neo-Org. XIII and the plot, and refuses to lay any claim on the rest of the KH franchise.**

**Xer: All together, you two!**

**Xer/Sora/Xon/LS: Let's rock!**

**Sora: What the hell?**

**LS: Sorry, was late.**

**Riding the Path to Twilight**

**Ch. 5**

**Linger No Longer**

The Keyblade Graveyard remained as desolate as it had been for the past 10 years. The Keyblades of warriors past littered the ground as far as the eye could see in any direction. The canyons formed in the last battle to occur on this world remained practically unweathered. It was a dead world to any who saw it from space.

On the ground, though, was a lone suit of armor. Kneeling as if praying behind its blade, the Gaia Bane, it remained motionless. Nothing could stir it, save for another Keyblade.

This did not surprise Sora at all. He had fought this great warrior once before, and it proved itself to be more challenging than Xemnas had ever been. As he approached the armor, its helmet tilted up at the younger Keyblade wielder, as if to look him in the eyes.

"What do you wish? I have nothing left for you.", it grumbled, its tinny voice sounding familiar to Sora, but he couldn't place it.

"How about some simple conversation? That okay?"

The armor was puzzled by the boy's statement. He was created out of a lasting desire to destroy Xehanort, and yet this boy wanted him to sit and talk with him... and he wanted to, as well.

"Well, if you are just gonna sit there, I'm gonna talk, and you'll just listen. Okay?"

_What is with this boy?_

"By the way, buddy, what's your name?"

"My name... I can't remember..."

"Jeez, you're such a downer. I'm Sora."

_Sora? Where have I heard that name before?Where have I seen that face before?_

Sora proceeded to talk with the armor. He talked about his friends, his training, what he had to do after training, and other things as well. The armor listened. It memorized everything. As the sun set, Sora stood up from the rock he was sitting on, stretching.

"Well, back to training. See you next week?"

"If you must."

"Thanks. I need a friend right now, man."

As Sora walked away, the armor sat down on a rock. _There'd be no way he'd return, right?_

A week passed, and Sora returned, much to the armour's surprise.

"Man, summoning training is a pain. I'll be glad when I finally figure out shoot-locking."

Apparently, Sora's master had him practising shoot-locking, a high-level Keyblade technique. Sora was irritated by how different it was from using magic he was familiar with. Added together with agility training, magic improvement, and regular sparring, Sora was constantly worn out. He was constantly improving, though.

"Who knows, maybe we could fight again, sometime later? Today, I'm bushed."

"Maybe later, Sora." _I can't believe I called him by name._

"Till next week?"

"Sure.", the armor said, a little joy shining through the steely voice.

Over the course of three years, Sora and the Lingering Sentiment (a name it chose for itself) continued to talk once a week. They also sparred, with the Sentiment providing insight into the flaws of Sora's fighting style. As they talked, the Sentiment remembered more about his past, and discussed what he did with Sora. The younger boy was thrilled with the adventures of this ancient hero, especially as he recognized some of the villains he'd battled.

Back with Xehanort, who had taken to utilizing Castle Oblivion as a multi-purpose training area, was constantly impressed by Sora's improvement. He began to wonder where Sora was going on his days off, as he often came back from them knowing a new technique, and said he'd 'just decided to try something unexpected.' He didn't look too far into it, though. The more the hero developed, the better.

On Sora's last day of training, he met the Sentiment as usual, but different. His short, black jacket had been exchanged for a long black coat with black metal shoulder guards. His pants, still black, were longer and straighter. His shoes were more like regular black sneakers. The strange silver designs across the clothes were much simpler-looking. All that remained the same were his gloves and his silver necklace. Across his back were his two favourite keyblades, Oathkeeper and Oblivion, and in his right hand was a third blade, apparently named Two Become One.

"Nice new gear, huh?"

"A present from the master?"

"Yup."

"I guess your training is over."

"Don't sound so depressed.", Sora said, putting his arms behind his head, as he does regularly. "I'll keep visiting. Don't worry."

Seeing Sora do this triggered something deep within the armor. As if a dam burst, memories flooded into the armor. Everything popped into it's 'mind': Aqua, Ventus, Eraqus, Vanitas, Xehanort, and-

"My name..."

"Huh?"

"I remember it now."

"Well, go ahead, spill the beans."

"It's Terra."

Sora looked shocked.

"What's wrong, Sora?"

"Did you remember anything else?"

'Terra' told Sora everything he hadn't already (A/N: From before the fight with Eraqus onwards). Afterwards, Sora looked like he was panicking.

"B-but... if you're here... who trained Riku and I?"

'Terra' panicked as well. If Xehanort had Riku...

"Sora, we need to go to your friends. Now. You lead." , he said, drawing Gaia Bane.

"Right."

As they rushed back to the portal Sora had used during each of his visits, a point of light appeared in the centre of the swirling dark void. The point of light expanded outward, and had half-consumed the portal when Sora and the armor had arrived at it's location. As if detecting their presence, the light quickly destroyed the remainder of the portal.

"Damn it!", Sora yelled.

Terra looked up, then back to Sora. "Hey, Sora, can you create a Keyblade Glider?"

"Yeah. Why?"

Terra grabbed onto one of the pauldrons on Sora's coat, and there was a low glow as Terra funnelled a spell into it. As his hand moved away, the shoulder guard bore the recurring emblem of the Keyblade Masters. "Press your hand to that, and you'll get a suit of armor like this. You can use it to fly between worlds with a Glider."

Sora did exactly that. With a flash, Sora was donned in black and silver armor shaped like Terra's, but proportioned for himself. Underneath him was Two Become One, just reformed into a skateboard-looking machine.

"Let's go!", Sora said, and in an instant, he'd gone airborne and was breaking through the upper atmosphere. Terra summoned his own Glider and followed. _Damn you, Xehanort..._

_Disney Castle: Throne Room_

Riku stepped out of a Dark Corridor, with Terra not far behind him. Now 19, his appearance hadn't changed a bit. Three more Corridors appeared, each with different people in tow.

First was Xehanort, on his own.

Second was Lightning and Ventus. Lightning was in a completely different set of clothes. She had a white sleeveless shirt, over a brown one, half done up. A dark green skirt and brown boots covered most of her legs. Her arms had dark-blue gloves, with a sleeve of dark blue reaching up her left arm, and a brown leather band on her right. Hanging behind her was a dark red cape, and behind her waist was a strange holster holding Tenebrae in it. Riku never saw her more attractively before, especially with the added muscle tone. (A/N: for the proper look, see Lightning in FFXIII). Ventus hadn't changed.

The last one had Kairi and Aqua. Their garb was almost identical. Kairi didn't have sleeves, but had red 'sleeves' at her elbows, and dark brown gloves completely covering her hands. Her top didn't have belts on it, and was even darker than Aqua's. The red skirt over the black shorts was a big change, as was the choice of almost knee-high black boots over the armoured shoes and black stockings. Hanging horizontally from behind her waist was Dawn's Light. Her hair had grown even longer, now almost past the small of her back. Her body had also toned significantly.

The three from the Destiny Islands hugged and talked about what had happened, while the masters talked for a bit.

"Master Xehanort, where is Sora?", Kairi asked, noticeably concerned. He'd hadn't appeared in the 20 minutes since they'd arrived.

"He said he was talking to a friend, and he'd catch up."

"Okay." Sora could make a friend anywhere, couldn't he?

Before she could go back to her friends, a loud scream, from Sora, came from directly above them, saying, "XEHANORT!". The glass roofing shattered as two armoured soldiers crashed down through it. As the black soldier landed, the armour vanished, revealing none other than Sora.

_Battle theme (Vs. Master Xehanort): Imperial Code – Blazblue: Calamity Trigger_

Sora leaped forwards, and brought Oathkeeper and Oblivion crashing down at Xehanort. The attack was blocked with a swipe of Xehanort's Keyblade, and Sora landed a few meters away, shifting himself into Roxas's dual-wielding stance.

"Get away from Aqua, Ven, and my friends, you bastard!"

"Sora, what the hell is going on?", Terra asked.

"Shut up, poser."

"What?", Terra asked.

"You heard him, Xehanort.", said a voice, exactly like Terra, from behind him. "Get out of my body." 'Terra' stood behind Terra, levelling Gaia Bane at his neck.

There was no noise, then... a laugh.

"Oh well, this was fun while it lasted.", came a deeper, much more evil voice.

Riku recognized the voice in an instant. It had haunted him for a year, making him fight his friends, pressuring him into the dark.

"Xehanort?"

Terra erupted in a burst of darkness. As the energy died down, Terra's hair had gone silver, his eyes yellow, and his skin had tanned. Behind him floated the Shadow Guardian, and in both hands were red energy blades.

"Riku, Sora, did you miss me?"

_Battle Theme (Vs. Xehanort): Bullet Dance – Blazblue: Calamity Trigger_

Riku summoned Way to the Dawn and charged at Xehanort. As he ran, shadows wrapped around his body, forming his Suit of Darkness. It had changed, with it being black and white only (A/N: the Vanitas Sentiment's suit).

_Command Shift Lv. 1 – Reaping Shadow._

He began swinging and firing magic in a very elegant, almost dance-like way. Xehanort parried each blow with the blades while using his Guardian to attack, but couldn't hit him either. Their fighting looked like a elegant combination of sword attacks, kicks, spells, and Guardian punches. As Xehanort almost clipped Riku with an energy blade, he was forced to block a white bolt that flew toward his head.

"We fight together, okay?", Lightning spoke up, pointing Tenebrae at Xehanort. Her index finger was looped through a trigger on the handle, and a gun barrel was now protruding from the top of the sword. Her entire body was crackling with pink electricity.

_Command Shift Lv. 1 – Gravity Bomb_

Riku nodded, and the two continued their assault, Riku continuing his barrage of point-blank attacks, and Lightning began leaping in and out of range, firing bullets and swinging her blade as her distance altered. She'd noticeably gained the ability to occasionally defy gravity, as evidenced by her walking on a wall while firing a volley of bullets at Xehanort.

Sora had continued to assault Master Xehanort with his keyblades, with Terra joining him in the attack.

"You're not Xehanort." Sora said, as the three warriors backed away from eachother.

"Hm?", said the Master, not amused.

"It's true." Terra said, lunging and swinging for the master's head. "I know that's his heart in me over there. Who are you?"

The master jumped far away from the assault of the two swordsmen.

"Well, if my cover's blown, I guess I can show you...", he said, an aura of nothingness encircling him as he spoke.

"How about I don't give you the chance!" Kairi said, leaping forward to finish him off. She was so close to hitting him, when a keyblade blocked hers.

_Battle Theme: Vanitas Finale (Ven) – KH: Birth By Sleep_

As the aura died down, the swordsman was revealed to be donned in a black and red Suit of Darkness. His keyblade looked like it was made out of gears, with a lone blue eye at the top.

_Calamitous Reaper._

"Been too long, Terra."

"Vanitas."

Aqua could only stand and watch at then strange spectacle, as if waking from a dream. _Terra had turned into that dark being again, Xehanort was actually Ventus's dark half, and Ven was-_

_Wait, where was Ven?_ Looking around, Ven was standing motionless in the middle of the room, Keyblade drawn.

"Ventus, kill Aqua, and your heart is yours once more!", cried Vanitas.

"Wait!", Aqua cried, but Ventus, with his unearthly speed, was already attacking in Fever Pitch mode. She attempted to fight back, entering Magic Wish mode, but she was constantly on the defensive.

Meanwhile, with Vanitas...

"Kairi!"

"Yes, Sora?"

The three keybladers continued their assault on Vanitas, still unsuccessful. They just couldn't co-ordinate their attacks.

"Terra said he and Xehanort were sharing his body. If someone's heart were there to give him a fighting edge, could Xehanort be evicted?"

"In theory, but whoever did that would be stuck in Terra."

"Crap."

"It's just a thought, though, but I may be able to use Namine's link to the chains that bind us to pull yours back out if you did that. I'm not sure anyone else could."

"Sweet! I knew I loved you for a good reason. Be right back!"

Sora turned from the battle with Vanitas, who was dead-locked with Terra, and ran at Xehanort. As he did so, he threw Oathkeeper and Two Become One away.

"Sorry guys, this is a solo mission!"

"It's okay." said Roxas, catching Two Become One as he appeared in a flash of white.

"We'll help Aqua!" said Xion, appearing in a burst of darkness, and catching Oblivion.

"Did you know he could do that?", Terra asked Kairi.

"No way.", she said back, before parrying an attack from Vanitas. Terra leaped in to give Kairi breathing room

Sora leaped right at Xehanort-

Kairi focused, allowing Namine to work her magic-

Xehanort flinched as Sora jumped into him-

-and Sora found himself on what were two Awakening platforms that were colliding, one of the older Xehanort, the other of Terra. The two swordsman who shared the body clashed in a struggle that looked like it had lasted an eternity, Xehanort easily overpowering Terra the entire time.

"Submit.", the old warrior said menacingly, holding Terra on his knees with his Keyblade.

"Never!", Terra yelled, trying to push back.

With a flick of his wrist, Xehanort swatted Terra's blade away.

"Then your fate is-", Xehanort spun around to block Oathkeeper as it flew for his head. Sora ran in and, after recalling his Keyblade, locked blades with the Master. "Truly pathetic, Chosen One."

"Doesn't count if it's my kill.", the boy said, smirking.

Xehanort, realizing the meaning of Sora's words, turned to watch Gaia Bane slice him in half, shoulder to hip. The elder Master dissolved in a plume of darkness, and his Destati vanished, leaving only Terra's.

"Figured friends were allowed." Sora said, resting his blade on his shoulder.

"Of course." Terra said.

_Outside of the Awakening_...

Xehanort's body unleashed a huge pulse of dark energy, and two hearts flew out of it. One floated to Kairi, retaking the form of Sora. The other vanished, returning to Kingdom Hearts.

Riku and Lightning stopped swinging. The pulse died out...

And Terra, the real deal, stood before them.

"Where's Aqua?"

BOOM!

"There, presumably, master.", Riku said with a smirk.

"Sora, Ven's body is being controlled by Vanitas. Ven gave you his heart-"

"HOW? WHEN? WHAT?"

"Dunno, dunno, and don't you see the similarity between Ven and Roxas?"

"Yeah- Oh."

"Sora!", Kairi said.

"What?"

"I can feel something in Roxas... it's a heart!"

"What?"

"Not yours... there's too much light."

"Well, that explains the Keyblade-wielding nobody. OI, ROXAS!"

(Seriously, though. How else could a being with no heart wield a weapon that chooses its user by the strength of their heart?)

"What? I'm busy." Roxas ducked a swing from Ven.

"Merge with Ven, push out whatever isn't his, then Kairi will pull you out. Just make sure to leave Ven's heart there."

"WHAT?"

"Get in there, moron!" Before any more arguing could occur, Xion kicked Roxas into Ven, and the two melded.

Roxas stood on an incomplete Awakening platform. It had Ven on it, but was missing something... The light from within. He focused his power of light into Two Become One, and stabbed it into the platform. As it slowly lit up, Ventus appeared.

"Thank you."

_Going back now to more pressing issues..._

Ventus and Roxas split apart in a forceful fashion. Terra caught his friend and Sora assimilated Roxas as he flew by. Xion, walking back up to Sora, followed suit.

"Thank you, Sora." Ven said.

"No problem. You gave me some awesome moves and a great weapon, I returned your life. We're even."

"Terra!" Aqua ran over to Terra, locking him in a death-hug and kiss.

As they parted, Terra smirked. "Miss me?"

"Need some help!" the Sentiment yelled.

As the seven warriors turned, Vanitas bisected the armor at the waist.

"NO!" Sora drew Oathkeeper, and charged at the dark warrior.

_Battle theme: Thin RED Line – Blazblue: Calamity Trigger_

Sora's body lit up with a silver glow, his speed increasing to inhuman levels.

_Command Shift – Lv. 1: Trinity Soul_

Vanitas himself also began eminating a black aura, that seemed to wisp off him like thin silk strands.

_Command Shift – Lv. 1: Dark Ambassador_

Both warriors collided, blades locked. Oathkeeper and Calamitous Reaper emitting sparks as they clashed. Sora re-angled his blade and shoved Vanitas up. As he shoved, Oathkeeper exploded into a blinding light burst. As it died down, the weapon Sora held had changed. The teeth of the key had become a heart emblem formed by two metal strands: One red, one silver. The strands formed the main blade as well, the two strands wrapping down to the hilt, then around to the bottom, finishing up as the actual hilt that Sora held. The thassala shell charm that was the keychain now had Sora's crown emblem linked to the center. It was noticably longer than before.

_Bonded Destinies._

The new blade vanished as Sora leaped up after the dark swordsman, and began a new assault with his other two Keyblades. As Sora attacked, his blades transformed. Oblivion transformed into a purple-and-black longsword-shaped blade, with the teeth still forming the kanji for 'Darkness', but inverted, and the handguard was now shaped like an ellipse with two points at either side. Two Become One turned into a silver-and-white falchion-shaped blade, with the kanji for 'Light' now present as the teeth, and the handguard now formed another ellipse with a wing extending parallel to the teeth. Both keychains remained the same.

_Ragnarok. Excalibur._

Sora spun around in circles, slamming into Vanitas at every possible angle, with every attack being blocked. Vanitas smashed Sora away with a two-handed blow, only to be slammed back to the ground with a giant bolt of electricity. Kairi now stood before him, her own Keyblade having changed shape. It was the same basic design as before, except golden thorns now laced the lines of flowers, and it was a bit longer and slimmer.

_Princess Guard._

Vanitas flipped to his feet and tried charging her, only to be simultaneously kicked back by Riku and Lightning. Both had slightly longer, slimmer versions of their past Keyblades.

_Blazefire _(Lightning's). _Twilight Guardian_ (Riku's).

As Vanitas righted himself, he heard the buzz of magic build-up. As he looked, much to his dismay, Terra had charged his Ultima Cannon, Aqua had begun firing her Lightbloom, and Ven had slung his Pulse Bomb. All the Shoot Locks landed with a brilliant explosion of energy. As the smoke cleared, the seven heroes stood in awe as Vanitas appeared from the smoke, dusting himself off.

"Now that's not fair. Here I was, thinking I was just fighting the one, but now I'm atrociously outnumbered, so..." he said as he allowed the helmet on his head to dissolve.

The face was Sora's. Well, the skin was paler, the hair was black, and the eyes were yellow, but it was Sora's none the less.

Sora, Riku, Terra, Aqua, and Lightning held looks of shock.

Ven stared into the eyes of his dark self, loathing his dark self.

Kairi fell over, head throbbing in pain.

"... until later, I bid you adieu!" The air distorted around him, and then Vanitas was gone.

"Kairi!" Sora ran over to his girlfriend (at least he hoped the kiss 3 years ago made that official), resting her head in his lap.

"Are you okay?"

"No. That was no dark being. If anything, Vanitas... he felt like Necron."

_**To Be Continued Next Chapter**_

**Xer: Oh, btw, I'm now planning a Claymore mini-story, so keep a weathered eye on the horizon!**


	6. Race to Jenova, Pt 1

**Xernuht: Well, I promised Xargnio a quick update, so... let's see... Kadaj! Your turn!**

**Kadaj: Must I?**

**Xer: Well, you never know? Maybe Sephiroth-**

**Kadaj: Xernuht owns the plot, Squenix owns the rest!**

**Xer: Good boy :)**

**Rise Of Chaos**

**Ch. 6**

**Race to Jenova, Pt. 1**

Kairi sat in the library, head still throbbing from the encounter with Vanitas. Sora was beside her, concern written all over his face. _She was hurt, and I was there... I got stronger to avoid this possibility. How..._

Riku and Lightning stood near the door. They were both able to fight what seemed to be a fusion of Xehanort's Heartless and Xemnas, and still come out on top without harm. Riku knew they were holding back, too. _The darkness really is my weapon, now. There's nothing to fear, anymore. I can protect my friends, my family, and her..._

Terra and Aqua were also standing, except they were near one of the bookshelves. Aqua had latched onto Terra's arm. _My god, I can't believe it. He's here! He's truly alive!_ Terra looked at the woman on his arm. _My god, I'm back. I'm in control again._ Ven stood opposite them, looking at them. _ I attacked them. I tried to hurt my friends. I know it was technically Vanitas, but still..._

Sora finally spoke up. "I suppose a round of explanations are in order. First off, Kairi, what did you mean when you said you sensed Necron in Vanitas?"

"Exactly what it sounds like.", Kairi groaned. "When I touched the Cornerstone, I got a chance to feel Necron's aura. When Vanitas removed his helmet, I was hit with that same aura, but stronger. A lot stronger."

"I don't understand how that's possible, though.", Ven spoke up. " Vanitas is the darkness of my heart, not a being of nothingness."

"Yeah, well, I just know what I sensed, and I sensed Necron."

"Okay.", Sora said, trying to avoid an argument. "Now, how the hell did you not know something was wrong with Terra and Ven, or Xehanort for that matter, Aqua?"

"I don't know." Aqua looked down in shame. "I was in the World of Darkness, locked in there for apparently ten years."

"Huh?", all of the apprentices said unanimously.

Some time was spent explaining in detail the events that had shaped their fates, and the ways things played out for Sora and the others. (A/N: This is the plot of Birth By Sleep, FYI) After that was sorted out, Aqua returned to where she left off.

"Anyways, I was stranded there. Life was all about fighting off the shadows as they arose. As I made it to a strange shoreline, I ran into Terra. I scanned him, of course, knowing it was probably deception, but it was normal. As far as I knew, he was Terra through and through. He helped me out, and brought me back to Ven and Xehanort. I don't get why I never registered him as an enemy, or why I never sensed Ven's lack of heart."

"I can explain that, and what I'm sure is Sora's next question." Terra spoke up. " As you know, Xehanort and I shared the same body the whole time. When we got ripped into a Heartless and Nobody, his personality was dominant. Now, Sora's going to say something about destroying both. Wrong. You beat the living hell out of them, but they survived only to get sent to the World of Darkness. They reunited, reforming me. Now, in answer to Aqua's dilemma, Xehanort was a master sorcerer, probably on par with Yen Sid or Eraqus. With his mind, there's no doubt he'd use your emotions, mixed with his magic, to manipulate you."

"Well, that seems to cover everything that comes to mind.", Sora said, wrapping his mind around everything.

"Not really.", Lightning spoke up. "Why would Vanitas and Xehanort get us trained?"

"Simple.", Terra said. "While training, every student forms some emotional bond with their teacher. They were going to do to you what he did to Aqua. What's better than three Keyblade masters? Seven."

"Makes sense."

"So, what's next?", Kairi asked. "By my count, we've got one group of villains out to release an ancient god who'll destroy the universe if we let him, and a dark warrior with an unknown agenda."

"We deal with both.", came a voice from the door. It was Xernuht.

"We have a problem, kids. We need to high-tail it to Radiant Garden, now."

"Why?", Riku asked.

"This Vanitas guy is going to tell the Swords of Necron where Jenova is hidden."

"Who?"

"The group Kadaj is with. If they find Jenova, Sephiroth could be reborn."

"How do you know?", Sora asked.

"Come on, I'll explain on the way." A Dark Corridor opened, and all of the warriors ran through.

_Previously:_

Xernuht shifted himself in his seat. The Neo-Organization had found the way to The World That Never Was, and had taken up residence in the castle the first Organization had used. It took about a week to clear out the Heartless, but it was worth it.

"My god, three years, and we only found four others?", Vrilgix sounded angry with himself, for no obvious reason.

"Calm down, partner.", Knellax said, irritated. The first female member of Neo-Org. XIII, she was easy to irritate. Her spiky red hair, held from her eyes by a red headband, reflected her personality perfectly. Her soft face and curvy body, neither truly disguised by her cloak, betrayed her brutality in combat.

"It's not so bad." Xargnio spoke up. He was the youngest of their group, looking no older than 14. His blue hair was ruffled up on his head, its curls hovering all over the place. "At least I didn't have to fight anyone for a room."

"Neither did we." Xonel entered the room of chairs. Her long, blond hair complimented her azure eyes perfectly. Her body wasn't curvy, but her shape wasn't unappealing, either. She was kind to most people, and she loved small, cute animals, but she was truly a beast in combat. So much so, in fact, she demoted most members to become No. 2. She winked at Xernuht, forcing a blush out of the Superior.

"Oh, get a room." Xela groaned. The last member to have joined so far, Xela was an enigma. His dark purple hair was tied back into a ponytail that reached down past his waist. His grey eyes showed significant emotion, however.

"I second that.", Xargnio said, cringing at the adults.

"Well, good to see I'm not interrupting anything special .", came a dark voice. As the Organization turned, a warrior clad in a black and red bodysuit walked in. His helmet reflected the faces of the Nobodies back at them.

"Who are you?", Xernuht said, dropping down to the ground.

"I am Vanitas, and I have a proposition for you all."

Xernuht paused and thought. _Is this actually worth hearing through? What could he offer us?"_

Xonel saw that moment to use her authority. "What's your offer?"

"Simple. You help me retrieve some crystals and a head, and you get your hearts back? Great deal, huh?"

Xernuht thought more. _So, he's with Kadaj..._

Vanitas spoke up again. "I'm sure you know about the crystals. You've been doing enough snooping, after all. All I need to do is tell the Swords of Necron about Jenova's whereabouts-"

"What?" Vrilgix called Cutting Moon to his hand.

"The Swords of Necron? They're the guys looking for the crystals."

"No." Knellax summoned her battle claws. "I heard something about Jenova."

"Oh, yeah. Jenova knew where the crystals were. If we get her remnants to Kadaj, her genetic memory will give him the info. That's where you come in."

Xargnio summoned his spear and shield. Xela's scythe materialized in his hand. Xancel, remaining silent throughout, called out his swords.

"Hmmmmm... I'm not welcome here, am I?"

"Not really." Xonel leveled one of her pistols at Vanitas's head.

"We are using the power we gained to preserve order." Xernuht glared at the other man. "You want me to forsake that for selfish reasons?" A shining halberd appeared in his hand. "No deal."

"Oh, well." Vanitas turned and walked away. Before he vanished into the shadows, he said one thing.

"I guess Radiant Garden will have to deal with a smaller group reservation!"

Xonel fired off a bolt of lightning from her gun, striking nothing. "Crap!"

Xernuht spoke up right away. "Xonel, you lead the others to Radiant Garden. Meet with Leon, and warn him."

"Yes, sir." Xonel fired off a salute.

"Uh, Superior?" Xargnio asked. "What are you doing?"

"Getting the extra help. Duh."

_To Be Continued_

**Xer: Small chappie, but more to come! Till next time!**


	7. Race to Jenova, Pt 2

**Xer: I figure it's been too long since my last real update, so I'm back, kiddies!**

**Vril: Hooray!**

**Xan: Yay!**

**Xonel: Alright! *leaps in for bear hug* **

**Xer: Let's go, then! Insert usual disclaimer stuff, and:**

**Riding The Path To Twilight**

**Ch. 7**

**Race to Jenova, Part 2**

**Xer: By the way, this won't end this arc.**

_Radiant Garden: Headquarters of the Restoration Committee_

Leon continued pacing around the situation room. He felt like he was doing something wrong. He shouldn't be the backseat leader. He should be on the front lines.

As he contemplated his current dilemma, a Dark Corridor opened near one of the far walls, and out walked one black-robed man and seven keyblade wielders. The robed man, Xernuht, went back through the Corridor before it closed. Leon snapped out of his trance and joined the new arrivals. "It's great that you guys showed up. I was worried we'd be losing out on manpower."

"Well, we couldn't have that, could we, guys?" Sora slapped a high-five with the older swordsman. "Believe me, if you thought you'd have enough power based on before, you're gonna win a lot faster than you thought." His eternal smile was shining through once again.

Kairi couldn't help but feel better seeing him that way. "So, what's the situation?"

Leon made a gesture, and a video feed appeared of the chasm network outside of the city. The warriors stood in awe of the sight of the legion of soldiers and airships that were shown.

"We'd be fine as is, but look here." Another gesture, and some of the warriors were singled out of the crowds. Specifically, three silver-haired boys, a man in a red coat, and a strange man in a sinewy suit and a reflective helmet.

"Loz.", Riku said through ground teeth.

"Yazoo.", Lightning grumbled.

"Kadaj.", Kairi said with spite.

"Vanitas.", said Sora and the senior keyblade wielders.

"You in?", Leon inquired.

Sora turned to face Leon. The gunblader was shocked by the look of absolute rage that was hidden quite poorly in Sora's eyes. It was scary. "Damn straight."

Xernuht walked out of the Corridor into a large meeting room. Xonel, Vrilgix, and Xancel stood to greet him. "I got them."

"Alright!", Vrilgix cheered, "We're not gonna be outnumbered!"

"We wouldn't be, anyways.", the Superior said. "Can't you feel them?"

Xancel tilted his head in curiousity. "What would that be, exactly?"

"At least seven other Nobodies, all on this world."

"Really?", asked Xonel, amazed at this revelation. _I don't even want to know how, though._

"Yes. Come on out, everyone. You've gotta hide better." As if on cue, another door opened, and Knellax, Xargnio, and Xela stepped in.

Xargnio spun a chair around and sat on it. "So, what's next, fearless leader?"

"Each of us," Xernuht opened seven Corridors, "will recruit one."

"Double our numbers? A little risky, taichou.", Xela remarked. With a grin appearing, he concluded, "What're we waiting for?", and dived into a Corridor with his scythe drawn.

"Meet back here." the leader said, and the rest dove for a Corridor.

"General, we've found it.", a soldier spoke up from a console.

Genesis Rhapsodos went over to the soldier, and looked at the screen. The display was displaying mana readings like thermal images, and a massive source was resting in a cliff face near the home of Ansem the Wise, now the Restoration Committee's HQ. The warrior patted his subordinate on the shoulder, and went to the dark keyblade wielder named Vanitas.

"Ìt seems you were correct."

"Well, then..." the boy said, turning to the silver-haired siblings. "Are we ready to take destiny into our hands?"

Kadaj looked across the canyon at the giant building. "Never more."

Ventus had found his way down a hallway, only to pause and sit on a wall. _Sora's not strong enough. He had trouble with Vanitas. I could try that, but that would mean I'd..._

He shook his head. _No, It's gotta be this. No other way._

Terra and Aqua had found their way to a private room, where no one would unwillingly find them kissing themselves into near-unconsciousness. _Thank the gods these doors have locks_, aqua thought briefly. As they broke for air, Terra clutched his chest, near his heart.

"Are you okay?", Aqua said panicking.

"Yeah. I'm fine.", Terra said, the tightness vanishing. He hugged his love, and they cuddled into sleep's embrace. Before that, though, there was one last exchange of words.

"Tomorrow's the day, huh?", Aqua said, running her left hand through the man's hair.

"Yeah." He replied, hand resting on her thigh.

_Yes, and come that day, the master stroke shall commence, _came an inaudible voice from within Terra.

From within the darkness.


	8. Race to Jenova, Pt 3

**Xer: Needless to say, it's been another while since an actual new chapter's been released, so I'll do my best to set up the coming battle as well as I can.**

**Xargnio: Will it be badass?**

**Xer: No, it'll suck and end in diplomacy.**

**Xarg: WHAT A RIPOFF!**

**Xer: It's too easy to get you irritated.**

**Xarg: Just let me disclaim.**

**Xer: G'ahead.**

**Xarg: Xernuht owns only the original stuff. Square Enix and Disney own the rest.**

**Xer: And on that note...**

**Xer/Xarg/Kefka: Let's rock!**

**Xer/Xarg: AAAAAGH!**

**Riding the Path to Twilight**

**Ch. 8**

**RtJ Part 3: Tension Rising**

_Radiant Garden Restoration Committee HQ: Kitchen_

There was a light thunking noise as the refrigerator door closed. Sora popped open the bottle of soda he had retrieved, and began to consume the contents of said bottle. He found it impossible to sleep that night. A little known fact about Sora is that he finds it easier to sleep when he's had something sugary, and he ends up significantly more energetic the next day. Only a few knew this: himself, his mom, Riku, and-

"Can't sleep?", came a soft voice from beside him. Sora jumped a little, turning to see Kairi beside him, holding a glass of water. "Same here."

"Can't blame you.", Sora said bluntly, taking another swig of his drink. "Kadaj, Vanitas... we're in for a tough fight."

"Yep." Kairi put her glass down, turning to Sora. He met her gaze head on. "You don't think you can win, do you?"

Sora looked away. "One on one? No way."

"So?", Kairi said cheerfully.

"Hm?" Sora shot his gaze back to Kairi, confused at how she could sound happy.

"If you have a problem you can't solve on your own, you should ask for help.", she said, as if acting like a teacher. "I can help now, you know."

"NO WAY! IT'S TOO RISKY!", Sora yelled, before Kairi slapped him across the face.

"So I trained my ass off for 3 years to hit the sidelines again? No fucking way." Kairi said, anger hanging from every word. Her expression scared the hell out of Sora.

"Well, no... but...", Sora said quietly, gaze averted once more.

"But what?", Kairi asked, still angry in tone.

"He could kill you." Sora said, turning back to her. His eyes were glistening, as if holding back tears. "I can't take the chance that he'll kill you."

"So I can't die, but you can?". Sora was obviously getting nowhere. As he went to leave, Kairi grabbed his head and pulled him into a deep kiss. Sora lost all thought processes, only able to think, '_Hey, this is a lot deeper than last time. She's still really good at it though._' As they broke it for air, Kairi held his head near hers and whispered something he thought he'd never hear in his life.

"Sora, if you died, what makes you think I could keep living?"

Riku tossed and turned in his bed. Much like his friends, sleep eluded him. As he rose to go for a walk to calm his nerves, his door creaked open.

"Whoa!", he yelped, pulling his covers up over his naked torso. He felt that his pants would do for pajamas for the night, but the shirt was probably much.

"Settle down, lover boy." Lightning said, walking through the door. As she lightly kicked the door shut, Riku relaxed, sitting up to address her. For a moment, she said nothing as she took in the sight of his body, illuminated from behind by the moonlight. She swore every muscle, every contour of his body, every strand of hair, was forged by the gods for perfection. As she stopped ogling, she said, "Same problem."

Riku, however, almost drowned her statement out, as he also took a good look at her. Her shirt and shorts were all that remained of her new uniform, and the light that passed from behind him made her appear to glow like a seraph. A very sexy seraph. "...so how can I help?", he said half-dazed.

"Would you mind if I slept here?" she asked, not shy at all. This snapped Riku out of his daze, replacing his zoned-out look with a smiling one.

"Of course.", he said, moving from the center of the bed. The pink-haired girl slid silently beside him, gliding under the covers. Less than an inch was between them.

"Say, Light, about tomorrow..." Riku began to ask.

"What?"

"Are you gonna be okay?", he asked, reaching to her hand. As he grabbed the top of her right one, she closed it, interlocking their fingers.

"No. But I'll be ready."

Riku reached over the girl, latching onto her waist. He then pulled her right beside him. Their eyes met, hers reflecting the moonlight, his bright enough to appear to be glowing.

"I'll help you. Any path you walk, I'll follow at your side." he said.

"Even if it puts you at odds with Sora?", she asked, testing to see how he'd react to the use of his best friend's name.

"I'd walk through Hell and back for you, my Lightning.", he said, leaning in to kiss her on the forehead before pulling the covers up.

Lightning rested her head on his chest, listening to his heart beating. "... thanks. I feel better now."

Riku wrapped his left arm around his girlfriend. "You're welcome." She did the same.

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

"By the way, please take your hand off my breast, Riku."

Riku's hand slid down to her waist. "Sorry."

"Thank you. Like what you felt?"

"Oh, so much."

"Good answer.", she chuckled, as they fell asleep.

Xernuht walked up to Scrooge McDuck's Ice Cream Bar, approaching a person who seemed to be trying to force open the door. "Why are you bothering to do that?"

The person, now obviously a man, turned with a look that screamed, 'Busted'. As he turned, a silver disc formed in his hand, and he threw it at the Nobody's head.

_Battle Theme: I'll Face Myself ~ Battle ~ by Shoji Meguro_

Xernuht's head shifted slightly to the side, and the disc flew harmlessly away. As the Superior summoned his sword, he heard a chant.

"Oh admonishing melody, flow forth and pierce my foe with your indignant tones!"

A blue and gold field surrounded Xernuht, constantly collapsing. _So, I found a mage._

"_Mystic Cage!_", the man yelled, and the field imploded in an instant, bathing the area with bright blue light. The man turned to go back to his work, when another chant rang out through the city block.

"O holy Lorelei, your servant humbly calls for the weapons that armed a legion of heroes."

As the man looked around, he finally saw Xernuht standing on a rooftop, raising a sword over the roof, point down.

"May their grace lead the greatest of evils to their destruction."

Another disc flew at the leader of the Neo-Org., but it was too little too late, as Xernuht plunged the blade downward.

"I now command the gates of Lorelei to open."

A single gold streak flew from the sky, swatting the disc away. As the light hit the ground, it revealed itself to be a sword far different from the one the powerful Nobody held. It was designed like a rapier. The mysterious mage turned to run, but a hail of weapons fell upon him. A multitude of spears, staffs, and halberds locked the mage in place with zero wiggle room. Xernuht jumped down off the roof to greet the man. "You can relax. I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm here with an offer."

"Oh, really, and what would that be?", the man said, not at all amused with his current predicament.

"I'm creating a group of guardians to protect this universe, all of us much like you. No hearts."

"How did you-"

"Not important. I'd like you to help us."

"No jail time?"

"No, just this uniform." the leader said, gesturing to his robe.

"Deal."

"Hmph." _So soon to accept..._ "Could I get a name?"

"Matt. Why?"

"We operate with new names. I think yours will be... Xamtt."

Xamtt looked puzzled. "Couldn't I still be Matt?"

"No. Now follow me. We need to prepare you for your first assignment."

Sora was a little confused. Kairi had brought him up to the roof of the HQ, and had left him standing as she backed away. _What's she up to? Normally, I wouldn't mind, but right now..._

Kairi held her hand out, summoning Princess Guard. Sora snapped out of his train of thought just soon enough to summon Bonded Destinies to defend against an overhead slice. "What the hell?", he shrieked.

"It seems like I have to prove my worth in battle again.", his girlfriend said, before readjusting her blade for another attack, spinning for a thrust at Sora's gut. Sora parried the thrust and immediately went on his own offensive, using a flurry of slashes and kicks. Both warriors had adopted a one-handed fighting style, except Sora had learned to mix in some hand-to-hand, while Kairi had focused just on her swordplay. Unlike Sora, her body was better suited for evasion. Their blade clattered in the night air for the better part of a half-hour. When they finally broke off from their fighting, both were drenched in sweat, breathing heavily, and smiling.

"My lord... did you... get... strong...", Sora said, trying to get his breathing normal.

"I'm... still... not... you...", Kairi wheezed, flopping to the ground to rest.

"Yeah, well... I'm glad you aren't...", he said, his heart finally slowing to a normal pace. "I don't think I could love my face as much as yours."

"Shut up.", she said mockingly. "Damn, I need a shower now." Kairi lifted a hand, asking Sora to help her stand.

Which is probably why it surprised her when Sora knelt and scooped her up bridal-style.

"Hey!"

"Do you really wanna walk?", he asked.

"No, this is good." she said, realizing just how comfortable and warm being in Sora's arms was. "You just surprised me." She then noticed that he had one of his hands planted firmly on her bottom, mostly because he started blushing mid-question. "Like it?"

"Oh, so much.", he blurted out.

"Glad to hear.", she said, pulling herself closer. "By the way, Sora..."

Sora looked down at the girl... no, the woman in his arms, seeing a big smile. "What's up?" He began walking her back to her room.

"We could deal with both of our showers at once, you know?"

Sora's pace suddenly tripled.

Vanitas sat awestruck at the two keyblader's display of skill, a pair of binoculars held in his hand.

"I can appreciate a good display of swordsmanship, but I doubt you have to worry.", Genesis said, shifting from his seat on the plateau far away from the headquarters.

"How wrong can a person be?", Vanitas spat. Genesis turned, puzzled. "Individually, they're meat. If they fight as a team, though, and I don't think I could win."

"This hardly seems like a possibility."

"Then why did their spar seem like a dance, and not a brawl?"

"..." Genesis figured the dark warrior would cut to the chase. The question seemed rhetorical, at least.

"Their hearts are resonating. It's something similar to a technique I found on another world: Team Soul Resonance." Seeing Genesis confused, he proceeded to explain. "Essentially, on this world, squads of warriors would willingly harmonize the wavelengths of their souls, and their fighting abilities would harmonize to the point of near-clairvoyance, not to mention their actions in battle would never actually hinder each other."

"So they've got another trick. So what?"

"Heart resonance is different." Vanitas looked like he was panicking. "As two hearts get closer to achieveing a perfect resonance, their innate power and ability begin to merge, to the point where both warriors are equally skilled."

"And?"

"Not only are they almost equally skilled as is, but I think that was only a display of roughly 15% of their potential. I can't be sure, though."

Genesis looked like he needed a new pair of pants.

"We cannot fail at the re-acquisition of Jenova, then."

"So it would seem."

**Xer: So, not only do you get a sneak peek at one of the new members of Neo-Org. XIII, but you learn what the new secret weapon of the Good Guys is.**

**Xar: Yeah, well...**

**Xer: What?**

**Axiern: Don't worry, we'll all get our time to shine!**

**Xar: Thanks!**

**Kuja: Now we shall close the curtains to this silly drama.**

**Kefka: See ya! **


	9. Race to Jenova, Pt 4

**Xargnio: ... Hello? Anyone? We're doing the disclaimer now, right?**

**Cast: HAPPY-**

**Axiern: Belated-**

**Cast: BIRTHDAY!**

**Xernuht: Wish you all the best, man! Wanna do the honours?**

**Xar: Duh! Xernuht owns the plot and the OC's. Square Enix and Disney own all the rest!**

**Xernuht: Okay, now, all together, guys!**

**Cast: LET'S ROCK!**

**Riding the Path to Twilight**

**Chapter 9**

**Race to Jenova Pt. 4: The Genesis Army vs. The Neo-Organization**

Morning's light finally shone on the canyon systems of Radiant Garden, stirring the army of invading soldiers from their sleep. As they quickly rose, they immediately went to check their gear, clean their rifles, and chat before the coming battle. Even if they were all copies of the warrior Genesis Rhapsodos, they were all individually different, and they never let that go. Some off the soldiers were different, some being heavy weapons wielders, others being heavy-armoured CQC soldiers, and other faster mid-range shotgun-and-baton users, but they were all people.

After they all finished their checks and the battalion leaders gave the 'All Clear', the commander gave the order to march, and the three battalions began their march up through the canyons, each eventually shifting down a different path.

The commander, a mid-range veteran known as Copy 501, call-sign 'Enkidu', felt uneasy. The march remaining unhindered was nice, but it screamed "Hi, I'm a trap, and you fell for me!"

As the soldiers marched into a larger, very open part of the canyon, his worries subsided. As the battalions spilled out into the valley, one of the front-line scouts reported a single possible hostile: a man in a black robe.

"All units halt. Wait for my order to move ahead. Battalion leaders, if something happens to me, you're in control of your units only.", Enkidu said, and advanced to the potential hostile, hoping for a peaceful negotiation.

As he closed the distance, the robed man pulled his hood down, revealing a kind face and curly brown hair. As they finally met face to face, his hand extended to shake the commander's. Enkidu did just that.

"My name is Xernuht. I'd like you and your soldiers to go home, if you wouldn't mind."

"You may call me Enkidu, and I'd request that you and whatever forces the Restoration Committee may have return home until we retrieve what we seek."

"Let me guess: Force will be used if necessary?"

"Indeed."

"That's a shame. I'd hoped the commander to me more reasonable than his creator."

Enkidu chuckled a little. "Sorry to disappoint."

"Would you like to return to your units?" As the robed man asked this, he summoned a sword to his hand.

Enkidu merely shook his head.

_Battle Theme: Get Over The Barrier ~Roaring Version~ from Legend of Heroes VII: Zero no Kiseki_

The commander flipped his right hand up, swinging the baton in it at the man's head. As Xernuht backstepped, Enkidu raised the shotgun in his left hand and fired two shots.

The army that had stood back heard the twin reports of the shotgun, and the battalion leaders ordered a charge on the unknown enemy. The soldiers formed their lines and rushed forth.

As the thundering of boots filled the canyon, dark portals began appearing in a line in front of the rushing army, thirteen to be precise. Out of each stepped another black-robed person, each with their own weapon. A voice erupted through the valley as one of the new combatants spoke.

"I am Xonel, the Arcane Desperado, rank 2 in Neo-Organization XIV. Turn back, or this will be your declaration of war." Needless to say, they didn't stop. In a quieter voice, she said to her allies, "Pair up, divide and conquer. I'll wait for the Superior."

Vrilgix and Xancel immediately responded, firing off salutes, then ran into battle, causing the others to fall in behind.

"Knellax, with me!" Vrilgix called out, then leaped over the mainlines, followed by the redhead.

"Pheonix, we're pushing right through the frontlines! Follow up my attack!", Xancel said.

"Roger, and I'd like you to keep calling me Phen.", the girl beside him said. Her long brown hair fluttered out behind her as free as flowing water, contrasting Xancel's rigid hair perfectly, as she herself went airborne. Xancel skidded to a halt short of the advancing enemy, and slammed the edge of his icy sword into the ground. Immediately, giant icy spikes erupted from the ground, slamming soldiers left and right. The swordsman spun around, sweeping the burning falchion in his other hand in a wide arc, unleashing a spiralling lance of flames through the ice, ripping apart numerous Genesis copies as it evaporated the ice.

Above the swordsman, Phen took her bow and pulled it apart at the center, forming her twin swords. She then focused, summoning as much water as she could from the air, while still creating more with her own mana. The vapour from Xancel's first attacks pooled together with the moisture she'd created and collected elsewhere, and formed a giant falcon. As she dove down into the army, the falcon sped past her, slamming down on the soldiers with the force of a full cement truck as full speed. As she landed, she leaped into a group of soldiers and cut them down with a few simplistic slashes, then dashed back to Xancel, who had just left four warriors encased in ice.

Much further away, a heavy-weapons team attempted to fire at Xonel. There was no mistaking the whine of the RPG's as their deadly payloads rushed at the second-in-command's location.

If only a large stone wall hadn't appeared to take the hits. As the smoke cleared, the soldiers saw some words written on the wall: _**Look Up.**_

As if on cue, they looked up, and before any could respond, two 14-year-olds dropped into the middle of the group. One, male, wielding a halberd (Xargnio) cut down one of the soldiers, and the other, female, grabbed onto the other two's weapons and shoved them back. As they steadied themselves, they aimed their launchers at the two, and pulled the triggers. Xargnio pulled the girl close and summoned his shield as the launchers exploded, protecting them both from the shrapnel and gooey people bits.

"You sealed their bazookas?", he yelled. "Come on, Axiern, that's low."

"Oh, come on, we gotta win this, right?" she said to the boy. "Anyways, I'm leading with two now."

Xargnio smiled, memories of their past running through his brain. "Not for long."

Giant boulders flew through the enemy lines, courtesy of a hammer-wielding nobody named Nyndax. "Come on, this is no fun...", he said in a rather cold voice.

"I DUNNO 'BOUT THAT!", the battle-crazed Xela yelled. "THE NUMBERS GAME IS FUN!". Upon finishing that, his scythe splattered the blood of another two enemies, leaving more bodies lying on the ground around him.

"I'd rather duel a stronger enemy than an army." the earthshaker grumbled, slamming a poor copy through a few of his brethren.

"COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS, KIDDO! YAHOOOOOOOO!"

"_Wander in frigid mist forever! Slumber in a frozen river! Rest in a glacial bed as you calmly cuddle your demise! Embrace End!_", came the voice of Xamtt, as a large number of soldiers were encased or crushed by the sudden onslaught of falling ice. He immediately began spinning his discs, preparing his next spell.

"_O merciless conflagration, burn the very souls of my enemies!_"

Before his casting was going to finish, one of the CQC units aimed his shotgun at the caster, level with his head. If the copy hadn't waited to see the fear in Xamtt, he would have won their battle.

The axe in his back, however, took all chances he had of pulling the trigger away.

"_Crimson Flare!_", Xamtt cried, causing more soldiers to be engulfed in a torrent of fire from above.

"Watch your back, kid.", his partner told him. "You can't let the enemy get the drop on you."

"Fine, old man, geez.". Xamtt's silver disc knocked down another soldier.

"I have a name, kid.", he said as his axe flew into another soldier.

"I don't want lectures, Jeibux, I just wanna get this over with."

"Fine, kid. Let's get it done, then.

Vrilgix was a blur amongst the enemy combatants, his black sword flickering through soldiers left and right. _Can't drag this out too long..._

He turned to the side for a moment, checking on his teammate, Knellax. Sure enough, she was keeping up, ripping the foes apart with her twin claws. His eyes lingered a little too long on the contours of her body as she moved through the waves of Genesis copies. When he snapped back to reality, he almost ran into a CQC soldier. He quickly leaped up to the copy's head, snapping his head back violently with a backwards flip kick, and kept running and slashing. _Some days, I wonder if we really don't have hearts..._

He never really noticed her doing the same thing.

A pile of bodies was surrounding two of the robed warriors. One was holding a claymore, cutting down enemies with wide sweeps. The other smacked them down with his black-as-night staff.

"Does it worry you that we all wield such usual weaponry, Huntrex?", the staff-wielding warrior asked casually.

"Not really, Ryxed.", the sword user said, equally casual.

"It's just, it makes us seem predictable. Our abilities are too easy to judge."

"Slow your brain down, genius. Not everything's calculable."

Ryxed sighed. "True. A shame, that."

The bodies kept piling up.

"Done?", Xonel asked.

"Yeah... a shame, though. He seemed nice.". Xernuht swung his sword in a wide arc, and the blood that coated it slid off effortlessly.

"I'm sure a lot of these guys are, but they're still doing something wrong. They're planning to kill civilians if necessary, remember?"

"I know. Grrr... some days, a black-and-white situation would be nice. I hate these shades of grey."

Xonel patted the Superior on the back. "Come on. We've gotta rally our troops."

Xernuht smiled, feeling better. _That's right. I've gotta protect my new family._ " Okay then, Xonel...", he said, energy filling his voice as he summoned a shortsword with his left hand.

"LET'S ROCK!", they yelled as they charged into battle.

The three Remnants drove along a flat plateau, far away from the ensuing war. Vanitas and Genesis were riding with Loz and Yazoo, while Kadaj was at the front.

"Do you suppose our plan worked?", Yazoo asked no one in particular.

"Well-", Genesis was cut off as the ground and air around them erupted with magical bursts. All five of the men were forced off their mounts as they took many hits, and proceeded to detonate. Looking around, Vanitas quickly saw the source of the damage.

Seven keyblade masters, with weapons drawn, five in full armour, one in a suit like his own, and one in her new uniform, her pink hair blowing in the light breeze. The keyblade wielder in black and silver armour pointed his blade at them.

"Oh, I wouldn't be too sure about that.", Sora said. He then charged at the confused dark warriors.

**Xer: Of course, I leave my story here. I'm planning this to end in the next two chapters, give or take one.**

**Sora: WHAT? How could the story end in two chapters!**

**Lightning:*punches Sora in the head* This arc, moron.**

**Sora: Oh... oops. Owwwww...**

**Xer: My Blazblue story has also started, so check that out too! And do be kind enough to review!**


	10. A Sad Conclusion, courtesy of Nomurasan

Xernuht: Hey there, everyone, it's been a while!

Xonel: Where've you been?

Xer: Doing a lot. Been playing P3P, BBS, Dissidia, and now Scarlet Weather Rhapsody (I SUCK). Been watching Macross Frontier, Code Geass, Fate/Stay Night, Air Gear, Ouran, Star Driver, Occult Academy, AND Red vs. Blue. Been trying lots of stuff.

Xancel: Still, why haven't you updated?

Xer: Birth By Sleep.

Vrilgix: Then put it down and write!

Xer: Yeah, but BBS's the problem.

Sora: Eh?

Xer: Essentially, the ENTIRE PLOT of BBS kills my story. It's like I wrote into a plothole that didn't exist at all when I started... actually, that's precisely what happened. DAMN YOU, NOMURA!

Sora: Oh. So, what's next?

Xer: I stop.

Cast: WHAT!

Xer: Yep... this is it. I'm sorry, but I just can't keep writing this. It doesn't feel right.

Xargnio: But all the writing you did-

Xer: Will stay up. As my first project, I feel a certain obligation to leave it up. However, this isn't it for my KH writing!

Xar: Go on...

Xer: I have a twisted PREQUEL PREQUEL idea planned, littered with OC's, cameos from other games, and more! I'll be using his alias from now on. Come on out! (cue dramatic music)

Hunter: Hey guys! Wassup?

Organization: Eh?

Hunter: Yes. I'm a Keyblade Wielder. Essentially, the story's gonna be my take on the much older Order of Keyblade Wielders, back when there weren't only 2 masters.

Aqua: 3!

H: Right. Sorry. Anyways, there will be awesomeness ahead, so just you guys wait. Also, to the following users:

VergilTheart

keywieldinglegend

OblivusOctavius

I'd like to design characters in the new story based on what I've gotten for RtPtT. If that's okay, just say in a review. I hope you all check out the new story, and keep rocking!


	11. Not dead yet! Innuendo here

Xernuht: 'Sup?

Cast: *various ways of saying "Holy shit!"*

Sora: Hooray! We're uncancelled!

Xer: Not quite.

Sora: Eh?

Xer: I re-read my work, and it doesn't seem right leaving the story where I did. Dare I say it, my muse is back, kinda.

Lightning: Define 'kinda'.

Xonel: Long story short, the story's ending after the RTJ arc.

Kairi: Really ending?

Xer: Nah. Ending with the planned cliffhanger. If I can bear to look past Nomura's changes to the story, I'll continue later. Also, I'm not doing my other KH story. Can't fill the plot enough.

Vrilgix: Dude.

Xer: HOWEVER!

*big gasp*

Xer: There's yet another new plan in the works. With very few OC's, if you'll believe it!

Sora/Aqua: Go on.

Xer: Well, it'll be years before KH3 is even in production, and I'm not fond of the endings of BBS, despite them setting up the future... er, past, of the franchise. Not to mention missing too many chances for a badass Kairi. But how does one deal with this?

Sora: A time machine?

Xer: Close. A parallel dimension story.

Vanitas: Lame.

Xer: Don't diss this, man. You're the main villain.

Vanitas: What? Hmph. Okay, then.

Xer: Essentially, this is a story based on the question, "What if Xehanort couldn't possess Terra?", and how things would change in the story. While the Nobodies won't exist, they still appear as humans, and the story will take an early turn for the dark. Sorry, Sora, you're not the chipper guy you are now.

Sora: -_-

Xer: Kairi's a badass rivalling Sora's awesomeness.

Kairi: Sweet!

Riku: Short-stick-ended again. *sigh*

Xer: Not. Essentially, the main party's about equal in power as of their big union, and you never really trail behind your pals.

Riku: Nice.

Xer: And the Mysterious Figure does appear. How he does, I'll leave you to guess. But he sounds like Patrick Seitz, for future reference.

Ragna: Huh?

Xer: OI! You. Out. Now.

*Ragna gets kicked away*

Anyways, I'm not very active right now, but wait a little more, please. I honestly don't want to screw another story over until at least Chapter 69.

Get it?


End file.
